Saturday: Sauber hoped for better
The Sauber drivers failed to qualify for Q3 in Melbourne. Kobayashi clocked the 13th fastest time, but the Japanese driver hoped to do better, believing that the C31 had more to offer than this position. For Sergio Perez, things did not go as planned; he faced a gearbox problem and was thus unable to defend his chances in Q2, so he will start 17th. Both men intend to do everything to climb up the field tomorrow during the race.
Kamui Kobayashi – 13th and 13th
It is obviously disappointing. In Q1, I was really happy with the car and the grip, and of course, it was nice to have set the fastest time. But on my second run in Q2 with another fresh set of softs, I couldn’t find the grip. I have no explanation for that, it was totally different. I also had traffic in the last sector, but the main surprise was the lack of grip. Thirteenth is not really a very good starting position, and it doesn’t reflect the car’s potential. However, we will try to achieve the best possible result tomorrow.
Sergio Perez – 9th and 22nd
« We made some changes to the settings on the single-seater today and in Q1, I was very busy adapting my driving style a bit. In Q2, I knew exactly what to do, but then I couldn’t shift gears due to a problem with the gearbox. It’s really a shame because there was more to extract from the single-seater and myself. Starting 17th will make it difficult to achieve a good result on Sunday. I will do my best. »
Giampaolo Dall’Ara, head of track engineers
These 13th and 17th places do not reflect our true potential, but things went wrong in qualifying. It was really bad luck for our two drivers who were on their first stint when Fernando Alonso spun. On his second stint, Kamui was slightly hindered by Mark Webber, who made a mistake in the first corner in front of Kamui, who was on his out-lap from the pits and couldn’t properly heat his tires. Sergio had a gearbox problem that we need to analyze. We will now do our best to climb up during the race.
Update: Sergio Perez has received a five-place penalty for changing the gearbox. The Mexican driver, who was supposed to start in 17th place, will now start from the 22nd position on the grid tomorrow.
