Anna Andersson
George Russell is back on top.
He has pole position at a track where the majority of races have been won from pole position.
– Now I feel like my old self again!, he says.
Mercedes driver George Russell has dominated all weekend in Barcelona and safely drove into pole position in the heat of Spain.
– It has been a fantastic weekend so far. I’m always there and fighting at the top. I came to this weekend with a blank sheet of paper, I felt strong straight away and it feels great to be on pole position, says Russell, who has had a couple of tough weeks.
He won the opener in Australia, but has since been beaten by his colleague Kimi Antonelli in recent weeks and also lost second place in the World Cup to Ferrari’s Lewis Hamilton.
– It will be an interesting race tomorrow. Lewis did a very good job to get up there, so I’m sure it will be a tough fight. It won’t be easy tomorrow, says Russell after his 10th pole position.
Hamilton chases first victory for Ferrari
Ferrari have brought a big update to this weekend and in the hands of Lewis Hamilton the car has really come to life, which is interesting as Barcelona is a traditional F1 track which usually gives a good indication of how a car will perform in the upcoming races of the season.
– We didn’t feel completely comfortable and didn’t really have the speed with us earlier today. During the third practice I was four to five tenths behind and thought: “My God, where am I going to find that time?”, says Hamilton after qualifying.
During today’s third practice he was only fifth, during the second he was ninth and the first he did not drive at all because he then lent the car to Dino Beganovic.
– I left the track between the third practice and qualifying, came back and was fastest in Q1. The team did a fantastic job. Congratulations to George, but we’ve put ourselves in a position where we can fight tomorrow. Now we are looking forward to a really good race, says Hamilton.
Since Hamilton decided to ignore driving in Ferrari’s simulator, he has now taken two second places and one start in the front row. Tomorrow he will drive for his first victory for Ferrari and it will be interesting to see the battle in the first 730 meters to the first corner. According to the statistics, 25 of the 35 races decided in Barcelona have been won from pole position, but also second starting position has been successful.
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Mercedes’ WC leader Kimi Antonelli starts from grid three and McLaren’s Lando Norris from grid four.
Short news from F1 in Barcelona
Ferrari has modified almost all surfaces up to the diffuser to increase downforce and create a more stable air flow towards the rear of the car. The hope is that the car will become more predictable and easier for the drivers to handle.
The new front wing is a further development of the previous model. The purpose is to smooth out the air vortices around the front axle more effectively, which should provide increased downforce while giving the engineers more opportunities to fine-tune the balance.
Even the construction of the nose has been updated, the underside has been raised to let more air through under the car towards the heavily revised floor. Ferrari has also reviewed the design of the sidepods and the area around the rear.
McLaren has adjusted the end plate on the front wing which should direct the air flow more cleanly around the car and thus improve the aerodynamic efficiency. Red Bull has made adjustments to the outer part of the front wing to get more downforce over the front axle, Mercedes has small extra wing elements in the middle of the rear wing, also to increase downforce.
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Note that Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc was the fastest of all during Friday’s race simulations, but from grid ten he is unlikely to win in Barcelona. However, it is positive for Lewis Hamilton. Will he take his first win for Ferrari?
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Lance Stroll beat Fernando Alonso in qualifying for F1 in Barcelona. Then it’s 42-1 in GP qualifying, it’s the first time in 707 days that he beats Alonso.
At Williams, Carlos Sainz now has 5-2 on Alexander Albon. The Spaniard has shown that he is more than a good driver.
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Arvid Lindblad made a mistake in sector 1 and thus missed advancement to Q3. Nor Alpine, who had Pierre Gasly on the podium last time went to Q3. Gasly was also beaten by his colleague.
