“We should have been ahead of the Renault today,” declare Pérez and Ocon
Now well settled in the top 10 in qualifying, Sergio Pérez and Esteban Ocon once again answered the call by making it to Q3. Things became more difficult, and neither the Mexican nor the Frenchman could improve their time during the third part of the session.
Following the qualifications, the Force India drivers are happy to be in the top 10 but are not entirely satisfied with the results obtained. The VJM10 lost performance during the last part of the session, without the Mexican or the Frenchman being able to explain it, which cost them a prime spot behind the top three teams.
Two cars in Q3 ✅
Lots of race pace for tomorrow ✅
Drivers in sync with the track ✅We’ve got all the ingredients for an epic #BelgianGP! pic.twitter.com/T5ga0LfTiF
— Sahara Force India (@ForceIndiaF1) 26 août 2017
Bothered yesterday during practice by some mechanical issues, Sergio Pérez made up for lost time and qualified 8th. « I am a bit unhappy with my lap in Q3. I was close to Räikkönen in sector one but when he aborted his lap in sector two, I ended up too close to him. I lost a lot of aerodynamic downforce and missed out on several tenths. I am convinced we had the pace to be ahead of the Renault (Nico Hülkenberg) but I think we are still in a good position for tomorrow. We should be strong tomorrow and I really hope we get the results the team deserves. »
As with his teammate, the result is mixed for Esteban Ocon, who, in addition to the loss of grip, experienced some mechanical issues in Q3. “At every corner I took, I lost two to three hundredths, and in the end, it was three and a half tenths, the same for Pérez, who lost a bit more. I also had an engine problem that slowed me down a bit.”
Usually strong on high-speed tracks, Force India has once again opted for a radical solution prioritizing speed over grip, as Esteban Ocon reveals. Turn 10 (Pouhon-Double left) is taken almost flat out, and we have much more grip than in past years. In sector 2 we lose a lot, we’re almost on par with the Saubers, but in sectors 1 and 3 we’re among the top 3-4. Tomorrow in the race, during the first laps everyone will be glued together and we’ll be flying on the straights, so there will be opportunities to overtake.
From our special correspondent in Spa-Francorchamps
