Uralkali Haas F1 Hungarian Grand Prix qualifying - pretty exciting Saturday 31.07.2021: FORMULA 1 HUNGARIAN GRAND-PRIX Hungaroring, Budapest Saturday, July 31st 2021 Layout: 4.381-kilometer (2.722-mile), 14-turn circuit Weather: Sunny Air Temps: 29 degrees Celsius (84.2 degrees Fahrenheit) Track Temps: 58 degrees Celsius (13

FORMULA 1
HUNGARIAN GRAND-PRIX
Hungaroring, Budapest
Saturday, July 31st 2021




Layout: 4.381-kilometer (2.722-mile), 14-turn circuit
Weather: Sunny
Air Temps: 29 degrees Celsius (84.2 degrees Fahrenheit)
Track Temps: 58 degrees Celsius (136.4 degrees Fahrenheit)
Pole Winner: Lewis Hamilton of Mercedes (1:15.419)
Result: Nikita Mazepin qualified 19th, Mick Schumacher qualified 20th (Did Not Start)
    

    Schumacher: 19th overall (1:19.406), 15 laps completed
Mazepin: 20th overall (1:19.933), 16 laps completed
Fastest: Lewis Hamilton of Mercedes (1:16.826)
    


    18-minute session with all 20 drivers – Top 15 advance to Q2
Mazepin: 19th overall (1:18.922)
Schumacher: DNS (No Time)
Fastest: Max Verstappen of Red Bull Racing (1:16.214)
    
    15-minute session featuring the Top 15 from Q1 – Top 10 advance to Q3
Fastest: Max Verstappen of Red Bull Racing (1:15.650)
    

    12-minute session featuring the Top 10 from Q2
Pole Winner: Lewis Hamilton of Mercedes (1:15.419)
Second: Valtteri Bottas of Mercedes (1:15.734)
    

    Uralkali Haas F1 Team drivers Nikita Mazepin and Mick Schumacher will start from 19th and 20th, respectively, for Sunday’s Hungarian Grand Prix, Round 11 of the 2021 FIA Formula 1 World Championship at the Hungaroring.



A heavy crash at Turn 11 in final practice on Saturday meant Mick Schumacher was forced to sit out the afternoon’s qualifying session – despite the heroic effort of the crew in the garage to replace the gearbox on the VF-21 and attempt to get the German’s car involved in Q1.



Nikita Mazepin was left to lead the way for the team and the Russian utilized three new sets of Pirelli P Zero Red soft tires for his qualifying attempt. The Formula 2 graduate posted a 1:18.924 on his first set before clocking his best time in Q1 on his second set – a 1:18.922. Mazepin failed to improve on his third and final charge on fresh rubber, duly exiting qualifying 19th overall.



Lewis Hamilton of Mercedes claimed pole position for the Hungarian Grand Prix – his first pole since the Spanish Grand Prix in May and the 101st of his Formula 1 career. Hamilton’s quick lap of 1:15.419 beat teammate Valtteri Bottas by .315 of a second.
    


    


    
NIKITA MAZEPIN


“It was a hot qualifying, one of the hottest of the year. That’s not doing any favors to the tires – they’re just melting. Apart from that, three very consistent laps so I’ve had a clean weekend. I got to a point where it got difficult to extract more from the car - it was pretty difficult as we’re lacking downforce so you’re consistently sliding around the track.


For a racing driver, there’s a few opportunities like T1 and T2 but from that point onwards it will be a managing race. The track temps are expected to be hot and they’re not going to be kind to a 70-lap race.”
    

    


    
MICK SCHUMACHER


“The feel in the car was amazing, especially in FP2 and FP3. The way we hit the wall was very unfortunate because that meant the whole side was broken and we had to repair and replace it and it’s just something that takes more time.

If we had five or 10 minutes more, we would’ve been able to do a lap - the team did a mega job. If we manage to be clean and save our tires, we might be able to gain a few positions.”
    


GUENTHER STEINER
    

“It was a pretty exciting Saturday for us. Everything was going well in FP3 until Mick had his off and the car was badly damaged. The team tried to get it together and they were very close to it, it was almost there, but they did a great job.


I have to take my hat off to those who tried to make it happen. In the end, we were a few minutes short of time to get Mick out again so qualifying was only with Nikita and he did the best he can and then the Saturday was over. We had no lack of excitement this weekend – not for the right reasons – but so it is.”
    


- Stuart Morrison, photos Haas