Alfa Romeo’s Frédéric Vasseur: “We knew the biggest chance to make up places was at the start”

Frédéric Vasseur said it was positive to come away from the first-ever Sprint Qualifying race with improved grid positions, with Kimi Räikkönen gaining three positions thanks to his start.

Räikkönen started seventeenth after a poor Qualifying performance on Friday evening but using Pirelli’s soft compound he was able to gain two positions at the start, and then he moved up another spot thanks to the spin from Red Bull Racing’s Sergio Pérez on lap seven.

Team-mate Antonio Giovinazzi was less fortunate, losing two positions at the start to run sixteenth, although he also profited from Pérez’s spin to move up to fifteenth, meaning a net loss of one spot.

Vasseur, the Team Principal of Alfa Romeo, says the team can be satisfied with the outcome of Sprint Qualifying as it gives them something to work with during Sunday’s full-length British Grand Prix.

“It was an interesting first experiment with the Sprint Qualifying format, and to come away from it with a gain in terms of grid positions is definitely a positive,” said Vasseur.  “We knew the biggest chance to make up places was at the start and Kimi did really well to make the most of his soft tyres.

“Unfortunately, Antonio had some wheelspin and couldn’t produce one of his strong starts. After that, it was a matter of not losing the ground we had gained: we brought the car home with a result that equals what we would have had with two cars in Q2 on a regular weekend, so we can be satisfied as we prepare for tomorrow’s race.”