Aston Martin Aramco Cognizant F1 Saudi Arabian GP qualifying - Ready to fight 18.03.2023: SAUDI ARABIAN GRAND PRIX Jeddah Corniche 17-19 March 2023 Saturday, March 18th 2023 "We are ready to fight and we have a good race car" In Numbers Fernando Alonso FP3 P03 1.29.483 21 Laps Q1 P03 1.29.298 07 Laps Q

SAUDI ARABIAN GRAND PRIX
Jeddah Corniche
17-19 March 2023
Saturday, March 18th 2023
 


"We are ready to fight and we have a good race car"



In Numbers

Fernando Alonso
FP3    P03   1.29.483    21 Laps
Q1      P03   1.29.298    07 Laps
Q2      P02   1.28.757    05 Laps
Q3      P03   1.28.730    06 Laps

Lance Stroll
FP3    P04    1.29.509    21 Laps
Q1      P04    1.29.335    07 Laps
Q2      P05    1.28.962    08 Laps
Q3      P06    1.28.945    05 Laps




Soundbites




Fernando Alonso


“All in all we have to be very happy with starting on the first row of the grid tomorrow. It is a very different circuit compared to Bahrain and to see us fighting in Q3 again is a positive sign. The track did evolve during the session, but maybe not as much as we anticipated, especially from Q2 to Q3.



Our strength in this package has been on the long runs, so hopefully we can optimise this as much as possible tomorrow. It is very tight between a number of teams so tomorrow will be an interesting battle for sure. But with both cars starting inside the top five positions, our main goal is to come away from this race with as many points as possible.”





Lance Stroll


“The team delivered a really strong qualifying performance today and we have put ourselves in a great position to fight for a good haul of points in the race tomorrow. We were not sure whether the pace we saw in Bahrain would translate to such a different circuit here in Jeddah, but the car felt good and we were able to keep pushing the limits throughout qualifying.


 My final lap was going well, and I went purple in the first sector, but I made a small mistake at Turn 22 and lost two or three tenths. Still, starting fifth is a good result; we have a competitive race car, and there is all to play for tomorrow.”





Mike Krack, Team Principal


“A strong performance by the entire team this week gives us a great opportunity and confidence for tomorrow. We will start from the front row with Fernando and fifth with Lance, and we will continue pushing hard to convert today’s speed into results tomorrow.


The lead up to qualifying was pretty smooth: we did our homework on Friday and in final practice, and both drivers were happy with the car balance heading into qualifying.



We expect a very close race tomorrow with the teams around us. It is usually an intense race here; it can be unpredictable, and you always have to be reactive and avoid mistakes. But we are ready to fight and we know we have a good race car.”





Will Hings, photos Aston Martin