First Q3 of his career for Ericsson in Malaysia
Marcus Ericsson made a mark today in Malaysia by making his first foray into Q3 in qualifying. He will start from 9th position tomorrow. His teammate, Felipe Nasr, struggled more, being eliminated in Q1 and will start from 16th position.
Marcus Ericsson managed to make it out of Q1 for the first time and then qualified for Q3 for the first time in his career, setting the 10th fastest time, which ultimately became 9th place on the grid following the penalty given to Romain Grosjean (Lotus).
The Swede is obviously more than delighted with this performance – having been overshadowed by Felipe Nasr in Melbourne – and hopes to score new points tomorrow: « It has been a very good weekend so far. I have been able to finish each session in the top 10, and we can be satisfied to have repeated that in qualifying. In both dry and wet conditions, I feel comfortable in the car. At the end of Q3, we were close to our rivals, which is positive. »
Felipe Nasr was eliminated in Q1 and will start from 16th position tomorrow for the race following a rear lock-up, a recurring issue since Friday for the Brazilian: « After FP3, we saw that we were still struggling with the rear tires. In qualifying, we seemed to have found something. However, on my second stint on mediums, the rear wheels locked at turn 4, and I lost time there. It hasn’t been an easy weekend for me. »
However, despite this distant position on the grid, Felipe Nasr hopes to score new points tomorrow in Sepang after finishing 5th in his first GP in Melbourne two weeks ago.
