James Key, the technical director of McLaren F1 teamEveryone at McLaren says that they have enjoyed the challenges of introducing sprint qualifying into Formula 1.
Friday runs around Silberstein mainly focused on getting the most out of the car on qualifying trim, although they needed to be aware that Parc Ferme conditions came into effect earlier than normal, so they kept their eyes off Saturday’s Sprint Qualifying race could still turn away from the race on Sunday in full Great Britain Grand Prix.
“The weekend was a learning curve with a new format based on Sprint Qualifying, but we enjoyed the new challenges that came with it,” said Key.
“Vehicle specs were frozen for yesterday’s qualifying as Parc Ferme conditions kicked in early this weekend, leaving us with higher fuel levels this morning and tire compound assessment as the main focus for free practice, both in preparation for the sprint Qualification as well as the Grand Prix of tomorrow. “
Key was pleased with the way the Sprint Qualifying race went for McLaren Lando Norris and Daniel Ricciardo both move up one place from their qualification on Friday night.
Norris passed Red Bull Racing‘s Sergio Perez at the start and was able to overtake the quick start Fernando Alonso (Alpine F1 team) for the fifth in round six while Daniel Ricciardo was able to overtake both drivers and finished sixth.
“The sprint race itself went well for us with a great performance from our drivers, who both made up a position after overtaking the fast-starting Alonso, which prevented us from making any further progress in the remaining time,” said Key.
“For tomorrow’s race, however, we are fifth and sixth and have a good chance of scoring decent points.
“It’s been an interesting weekend so far – the new format certainly brings new elements and a different approach to what we’re used to. The fact that the car was pushed for seventeen laps this afternoon has certainly resulted in a lot of close races and I think it worked well.
“It’s great to see so many fans here at Silverstone – always a strength of this race – and we look forward to seeing them again tomorrow.”
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