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DRIVER GROUP 1: Zhou GUANYU
(Alfa Romeo), Max VERSTAPPEN (Red Bull), Kevin MAGNUSSEN (Haas), Lando
NORRIS (McLaren), Esteban OCON (Alpine)
Q: Zhou, we'll start with you.
Welcome. You've raced here before in Formula 2. Podium, of course, last
year, how different do you expect this track to be in a Formula 1 car?
Zhou GUANYU: Yeah, I think it will be different, but there won't be any
surprises compared to some other tracks I race, for example, in Bahrain, as
tracks, Jeddah, for example. Of course, the speed will be massive
difference. And also, you have to adapt a little bit the braking point also,
because I think you are braking super-late and it's very easy to make an
error – as we saw last year in qualifying. So, it will be different but
after experiencing Monaco, I think that just gives me… gained this
experience and into these different tracks. I think this track probably more
similar to Jeddah in terms of how you have to approach the circuit. I feel
like there's nothing special really, but FP1, I think, will be a session
just to be adapting again and getting into the rhythm.
Q: And what about performance? Do you think the layout will suit the Alfa
Romeo?
ZG: I probably wouldn't say too much here because I think expectation was
very high in Monaco, obviously, I think, surprised us as well, as a team,
that we didn't really perform as much as we wanted with quite of lot of low
speed in Monaco layout. This weekend, of course, the layout is a little bit
differently: it’s more like hard braking. I think in terms of the layout, it
shouldn't be a big effect. And we have to say we already find the issues we
were facing in Monaco that probably hold us a little bit back in terms of
qualifying performance. We felt like this weekend we can do a better job
than last time, and we have to just see, compared to the others, because
here, anything could happen. In qualifying, with a massive slipstream, for
example, like that. I think we have a good package and a good weekend.
Q: Kevin, we’ll come to you next. You haven't raced here for several years.
What have you missed about Baku?
Kevin MAGNUSSEN: I think it's an interesting race always. It's usually quite
eventful, with lots of Safety Car chances. In the past, there's been loads
of stuff happening. It feels like one of those races where you can hope for
some special result. So of course, that's what we do this weekend too. We
are hoping that we can race well and then hope for some kind of surprise.
Q: It was a double DNF for the team in Monaco. Is it important to get a
clean weekend under your belts here, and get some momentum back?
KM: Yeah, I think so. We've had good pace, at basically every race – maybe
Melbourne is the only one that stands out, where we were behind on pace, in
terms of being in the mix in the midfield – so I think with, as you said,
momentum, we need to kind of just get in there, get the ball rolling and
start scoring points regularly, because I think our car has the pace.
Q: And from your own performance point of view, haven't been here for a few
years. Is it the sort of place where you need to build up slowly?
KM: A little bit, I guess. It's a street circuit and you kind of approach
the street circuits a little different. But it's a cool track. I think it's
different, it's challenging. There's some pretty unique parts where the
track narrows, and then you're using kerbs. It's quite a cool track, I
think: although it's a lot of straights it's still a big challenge.
Q: Lando, coming to you. You've scored points in both of your previous
visits to Baku. So do you come here full of confidence?
Lando NORRIS: I would say so. Just off how we've been doing lately, this
year. Barcelona was a decent race, could have been a little bit better and
Monaco was a strong weekend for us. So, I'm hoping so. We always hope for…
In Baku, like Kevin said, many things can happen here. There's always
unexpected people on the podium and stuff like that. So, as long as we're in
that position, and at the end of the race, to kind-of potentially be in that
position, that’s the aim.
Q: What do you need from your car to be quick here?
LN: Good straight-line speed is always a lovely thing. I think you need a
car which gives you good confidence, as always, especially with the braking.
Braking, there's always good time to find. So, that street circuit vibe,
there's less room for error than on normal circuits. So, being able to
position the car where you want, being able to brake how you want, you need
that confidence in the car to be able to find the limits and to gradually
find that… know the walls and things like that, use all the track space. So
just a good car with good confidence. Straight-line speed is the actual
bonus.
Q: Have you got that confidence in your car?
LN: I would say so. I think Monaco is always a real test of having that
confidence. With bumpy braking, especially in this year's car, I would say
Monaco was probably a trickier race and trickier lap to deal with that it
wasn't in previous years. Maybe a little bit slower but the same time I
thought trickier with the braking, with more bumps. So, I think that was
maybe more of a test for the car and actually, what we got, and the
confidence that it gives me, I was happy with that. So, I want to say that
I'm happy coming here. But it's also much lower downforce and things like
that. So, it's a new test for us.
Q: And Lando, we're a third of the way through the season now, Where do you
see McLaren in the pecking order?
LN: It changes. So most weekends… I think there's been weekends when Alfa
Romeo been a long way ahead of us. I think realistically they've been
probably a quicker car throughout the whole season. Haas have at times been
quicker than us. I think we've just been consistently good, especially since
Bahrain – maybe not in Bahrain – but since then, we've just had a package
which performs decently at every track, which is always a good thing: to be
there every time and to be in the points. I think we were probably ahead of
Mercedes in Monaco. So around third, fourth, fifth, maybe sixth area. I
think it's a close group. So, as long as we're towards the front of that,
I'll be happy.
Q: Esteban, can I put that to you now? The pecking order question Where do
you see Alpine?
Esteban OCON: As Lando said, it's difficult to tell, it's a close group.
Definitely, when we qualify in the top 10, and, we have the pace in
qualifying, but it changes all the time, it's very, very close. And,
probably, we missed on some opportunities to score more with both cars. So,
we're probably a bit further away than where we should be, in terms of
Championship position for the team. But, there's good expectation for here.
You know, there's good opportunities to take every year, we have a very
updated car to come here. So, that's giving us confidence. Hopefully that
will that will work for us.
Q: And do you think you're closing the gap to the leaders in terms of race
pace with these updates?
EO: Well, that's the aim. It's always the aim, to get closer to the top. But
we still have a long way to be able to do that. So, to get to the top of
that close group is already what we should aim for. Get closer to Ferrari,
Red Bull, it's another task. We will push hard; we will try and fight and
try to be on the right side of the opportunities this time.
Q: Lando’s already said that you need a car that inspires confidence here in
Baku. Do you feel you've got that underneath you?
EO: Yeah, he's right. Yeah, you need definitely good confidence, on the
brakes especially. We've seen a lot of mistakes in on the brakes in Monaco,
in here last year. To attack all the corner entries after such long
straights is what you need to get. So, that will take time. We have three
practice session together right before Quali, so the time to push is Quali.
Q: Max, you've yet to finish on the podium here in Baku, but you've come
very close, particularly last year, how are you approaching this year's
race?
Max VERSTAPPEN: Like any other, to be honest. We just need to see through
practice, what we can do with the car, see where we are at. And try to find
the best balance and then hopefully, of course, we are going to be quick
enough to try and win the race.
Q: And when you have a failure, like you did last year, does that drive you
to make a take more of a conservative approach when it comes to strategy
this year?
MV: No, because it's not our fault. So, there's nothing we can do. We just
have completely different tyres anyway, this year, so the tyres are going to
behave anyway very, very different.
Q: Where do you see Red Bulls main challenges coming from this weekend?
MV: Don't know yet, to be honest. I think it's important to just go out
there and see what we need from the car and then just work from there.
Q: Final one for me. Ferrari boss Mattia Binotto has said this week that
Ferrari’s goal for 2022 is to be competitive, not specifically to win the
World Championship. What are your thoughts on that? Does it give you – Red
Bull Racing – a psychological advantage?
MV: No, I mean, we just have to focus on ourselves and they're very
competitive. It’s good for the sport, and from our side, we enter every
weekend to try and win the race. But it doesn't change if somebody else of
another team says something.
QUESTIONS FROM THE FLOOR
Q: (Scott Mitchell – The Race) This is to Max and Lando, but if any of the
other drivers have anything to say, please do. There's been a bit of talk in
recent weeks about the possibility of the driver salary cap, that’s been
talked in the background a few times. The two of you did new, long-term
deals earlier this year. So, just wondered, first of all, what your thoughts
on, theoretically, your value potentially being limited? And second, do you
know how it would work in terms of, if a cap came in, after you've
introduced long term contracts? It's not really been clear whether anything
would have to change? Or if they'd have any way of forcing changes, if there
were any way in which the restrictions impacted your new deals? Thank you.
MV: It's still all a bit vague as well, right? I mean, I think no one really
knows where it's goping to go. But from my side, it's completely wrong.
Because I think at the moment F1 is becoming more and more popular and
everyone is making more and more money, including the teams, Formula 1 –
everyone is benefiting. So, why should the drivers, with their IP rights and
everything, be capped, [drivers] who actually bring the show and put their
lives at risk? Because we do, eventually. So, for me, it's completely wrong.
But also, not only that, because in all the junior categories, if you see
how many of those drivers have a sponsor or backer, who eventually will have
a certain percentage of their income in potentially Formula 1 or whatever, I
think it's going to limit that a lot, because they will never get there
return, in money, if you get a cap. So it will hurt all the junior
categories as well. And I don't think you would want that.
LN: I think Max explained it well, really. Mainly because I've not had to
think about it probably as much as him. So, I think what he said is correct,
and especially with the investment part into young drivers. It's difficult
enough to get into Formula 1 at all, so as soon as you have the backing,
where you have an investor, as a driver. They obviously want their money
back at some point and you're going to have to do that. If it gets capped,
and so on, it's much harder, and will interest people much less to ever
invest into young drivers and invest into people having chances to get to
Formula 1 in the first place. So, I think that's probably one of the main
points. But Max has probably has thought about it much better than me – and
therefore his answers is better.
Q: (Jon Noble – motorsport.com) Max, we've heard a lot, in the past few
weeks, about Sergio being more comfortable with this year's car, compared to
last year. Are you less comfortable with the more neutral handling of this
year's cars? Are you chasing a more pointy front end? Or is it hard to do
that without compromising kind of tyre wear and the race form?
MV: I definitely see, of course, Checo is a bit more comfortable than last
year. For my side, yeah, I would like a bit more front end, that's what
we're working at. I don't say like I'm uncomfortable in the car but these
cars are so heavy, and long, and wide that, with increased weight as well,
you want a car, which turns better, because it just goes faster around a
corner. And you can extract a bit more in qualifying when you really push
it, which cannot at the moment, but it's not all very dramatic. I mean, I
still won four races. So, that's more than I did last year at this time. So,
it's not that bad. It's just fine-tuning little things.
Q: Kevin, let's throw that to you. You've had the longer break after a year
out what's been the biggest thing for you to get used to with these cars?
KM: I don't know. I think it's different. But getting used to it, I think.
I’d agree with Max, that the cars have more understeer mid-corner; that the
car doesn't want to rotate as well as the old cars. I haven't struggled with
it. It's very stiff and bumpy, of course – that's the main thing that you
notice when you drive these cars for the first time. You think, okay, this
is different. It's very harsh on every bump and every kerb. But, you know,
it's still a Formula 1 car, still good to drive, it's still super-fast. I've
been driving prototypes all of last year and coming back to this, probably I
feel the difference less, because I came back into a Formula 1 car that is a
lot faster than what I just got used to, in sports cars last year. So, it's
fun.
Q: And Zhou, is the driving style actually quite similar to Formula 2?
ZG: I have to say, probably not too much, just because obviously,
especially, this year’s tyres. In Formula 2, firstly, in the long distance,
you have to manage it quite a lot of tyre, they’re pretty much dead after
three or four laps, where here you can push a little bit more through.
Sometimes in qualifying, like we saw in Monaco, or a track like Jeddah. In
general, the downforce difference is a big jump. So, the way you have to
approach the corner, and the way you have to prepare yourself, the radius of
the corners is completely different, and so, yeah, it takes a bit of time to
adapt. Especially in Barcelona, in Bahrain in T-01, T-02 [First pre-season
test, second pre-season test]. It takes time to be knowing how to drive
these cars fast, faster. And yeah, it's a bit of change but still, the
normal driving procedures doesn't really change much. Just to adapting
different cars. Of course, you have a power steering wheel that just changes
a massive feeling of the tyres. So, that's probably one of the main tasks.
Q: (Claire Cottingham – Racefans.net) Question for Max, if possible, please,
Max, obviously, you were the youngest driver to start in F1, at 17. Then
they brought in an age limit. But in Le Mans this weekend there’s a 16
year-old that's racing. I just wondered if there should be an age limit and
that sort of thing or if the driver is good enough that there's no need for
a limit?
MV: Yeah, if he's capable of driving, and I don't see why not. You know, it
shouldn't depend on age. You know, if he's 16 and he's capable of driving
and he’s not a danger to others, then I think it's perfectly fine.
Q: Esteban, can we get your thoughts on that?
EO: As Max said, I was asking Lando actually, I don't know who it is
exactly. But no, I mean if he's proven that he can, that he's capable. I
don't think age should be a limit. I've have arrived early in categories, in
karting, arrived early into single seater as well. And everything we are
looking at is the performance really, not your age and how mature you have
to be, and act to be professional at early age. And that's probably what
he's going to face now.
Q: (Scott Mitchell – The Race) Max, just wondered, has there been much
reflection on Monaco and whether anything could have been done different on
your side to win the race. Your father was quite outspoken afterwards, sort
of suggesting that maybe the team should have prioritised you as the
Championship leader, but you didn't seem too bothered afterwards that Checo
had had won the race, you seem to think it was just one of those weekends
that didn't work out for you. On reflection, could anything have been done
differently for you to win the race?
MV: My race was done on Saturday already after that red flag. Where I had to
start fourth. And then that's how it goes. Then in the race, you know,
you're the second car. So, you just follow the team's orders. And I think we
did extremely well as a team, to get the cars where they ended-up. I think
we all got also a bit lucky, you know, with backmarkers holding up Ferraris,
and stuff like that. But that's fine. Monaco, you know, crazy things can
happen. I was just a bit more disappointed about that Q3 Run where I
couldn't finish my lap. But that's also Monaco. I mean, the same happened
also, last year, Monaco but also here, in Baku, with a red flag. So, on a
street circuit that's really easily done. And it's only one race weekend, we
have so many more to go where normally you can overtake even if, let's say,
there is a bit of a disappointment in qualifying. So, yeah, Monaco is
probably just a bit of an unlucky one, if you're unlucky in qualifying, but
it's okay. I mean, we're still leading the Championship. Of course, I
retired twice already. So, to be even leading the Championship with the
margin I have at the moment, I think is very positive. We just look ahead
and a lot of things, good things, are coming, but hopefully it's going to be
enough.
Q: Esteban, can we get your reflections on Monaco? Obviously, it ended in a
frustrating way for you with the penalty. But do you take positives from the
pace of the car?
EO: Yeah, we take positives. Definitely, for sure. The ending was not what
we wanted, to be out of the points. But we were on for a very good lap as
well, as Max said, when the red flag came, I was going to improve by quite a
bit, and that would have changed completely the race weekend. But that's how
Monaco goes. Unfortunately. And the pace, you know, for the team. It’s been
good. Lando got the fastest lap, but we were just behind. We had good pace.
And, you know, we were fighting inside the top 10. So, all in all, it's
positive, it doesn't reflect the end result. But, you know, we're trying to
make that different here.
Q: (Jon Noble – motorsport.com) To Max. When you had your moment coming out
the pits in Monaco, and cross the pit lane exit line, did you know you're
allowed now to cross the pit exit line in those circumstances? And do you
think that's a good thing in safety terms, that drivers can now flirt and
ride this line, whereas opposed to before, you had to stay away from it?
MV: Well, that's the thing. I didn't cross it. I rode on it. It was close,
but it was also wet in the corner, so I naturally drifted that way. I think
normally, you don't want to, let's say, put yourself in a position but also
most of the pit exit lines you don't really need to. I knew it was going to
be close. So, you have to, of course, use all the margin you have.
Q: (Edd Straw – The Race) For Lando. You mentioned earlier that the car is
kind of handily competitive in the midfield across a range of circuits. Is
the car now a pretty good all-rounder or are there still specific
limitations you're trying to work on? Is it just more of everything? Or are
there particular corner profiles that are still proving tricky?
LN: I think there are still some slightly tougher areas maybe. I want to
believe in general we've probably improve the car like on average through
all the tracks. I think there's still a few which we were yet to go to which
we struggled at a lot last season. And I think it's different in terms of
characteristics to a lot of the ones we've been to – so places like
Zandvoort and things like that. So, we’re still yet to explore all of the
ranges of types of corners and tracks and so on. But I want to believe, and
I think have some confidence in saying, that we've improved the car
throughout most of these areas. And what we need now is, in general, just a
whole package upgrade. I think it’s handling reasonably well: there's
definitely types of characteristics that, personally as a driver, I still
want more from the car and it's just hard to go in that direction. It
changes: every driver wants something different. I think from what Daniel
and I want from the car is quite similar but there's definitely differences
in some driving styles and stuff and I sometimes bias my car more one way
than what he does, kind of thing. So it changes – but it's also down to
personally how I feel I want to drive the car. And I believe there's good
lap time in going in that direction. But it's just a hard thing to improve
on, especially from one race to the next. But I think over the next races
and next months and hopefully when we can bring some more bits to the car,
then we can move in that direction.
DRIVER GROUP 2: Sergio PÉREZ (Red Bull Racing), Lance STROLL (Aston
Martin), Alex ALBON (Williams), Yuki TSUNODA (AlphaTauri), Daniel RICCIARDO
(McLaren)
Q: Let's do something a bit different this time. Let's start in the middle.
Alex, you won here in Formula 2 in 2018? Just give us your thoughts on the
track?
Alex ALBON: Yeah, thank you. I love this track. I feel like it's quite a
unique circuit in the way that it's quite repetitive in some ways, you know,
you've got 90 degree corners everywhere and to get the lap time out of it,
each one's slightly different in its own way, so I like that challenge.
Obviously as a street track it’s very quick. And the racing is good. I don't
think we've had a normal podium finish here in in a while. So it gives
opportunity, which I think for a team like us, we'll take.
Q: So you're going to invite a bit of jeopardy, because it's been a
difficult couple of races for you in Barcelona and Monaco. Where is the car
at in terms of pace at the minute?
AA: Yeah, I think for us the main thing is we haven't had really any major
updates. So of course, the majority of the teams have done that in
Barcelona. We have some coming a bit later on. So there is the inevitable
struggle at this point. That's not to say we can't do a good job here,
though. It is a circuit that's a little bit more like Miami or Monaco. On
paper, it may look like not a great weekend in Monaco, but the pace was
pretty strong. So I think we can we can be opportunistic for this race, at
least. And we'll see in Canada until hopefully the updates arrive at some
Q: Alex, you've been at Williams for six months now and you've no doubt
started to form an opinion about its strengths and its weaknesses, what
insight can you give us into what the team is doing well, and perhaps some
of the areas where you think it still needs to improve?
AA: There's no real big secret, I think all the teams operate in a very
similar way. Of course, they have their own different styles of working and
what have you, but it's not anything obvious. And if the weaknesses were
obvious, we wouldn't be struggling so much. So, for us, it's more just about
chipping away at it. And I think the mentality and the drive is there it’s
just, you know, getting there. So we're working flat out right now to close
the gap towards the midfield. I think that's really our prime objective, to
get into the points and to be in those battles, getting into those Q2s. And
yeah, I think in terms of where we need it's a very boring answer, but it's
pace. We need we need a little bit more lap time in it.
Q: Okay, thank you, Alex. Best of luck this week. Let's go to Checo next.
Monaco winner what were the celebrations like after the race? And how was
the success received back home in Mexico?
Sergio PÉREZ: Yeah, it was pretty good celebrations. And it was obviously a
lot of excitement back home, because it was a great day for my country. You
know to achieve the victory in in Monaco, it's something that as a driver
you dream off for your entire career and achieving that is definitely very
special.
Q: Now Checo, when you consider where you were this time two years ago, not
knowing if you had a drive for the following year, and now you're a Monaco
winner. What does that tell you about this sport? There must be a lesson in
there somewhere?
SP: Yeah, certainly. Not just for me, I think for everyone, because in this
world things change so quickly, literally from one race to the other, you
know. You go from hero to zero in a matter of weeks. So, I think it's just
important to keep pushing, keep making the most of your opportunities, and
you never know when you're going to get the right opportunity in your
career.
Q: What about the opportunity this weekend? You won here last year, your
confidence is high because you won two weeks ago. Just give us give us a
little preview.
SP: I think Baku is all about confidence. It's all about not making
mistakes, you know, because here what really can catch you out is making
those mistakes and losing track time, starting on the backfoot and you can
compromise your weekend fairly easily here. So it's very important to stay
out of trouble.
Q: Okay, best of luck this weekend. Thank you. Lance coming to you now,
returning to the scene of your first Formula 1 podium, your first shoey. Do
you always enjoy coming back here and what do you think you can achieve this
weekend?
Lance STROLL: Yeah, I don’t miss the shoey, that's for sure! No, but it was
a great day, great memories you know, I love the track. It's always a great
challenge coming here. You know, the race on Sunday is always exciting.
There's always opportunity to overtake and yeah, it just always makes for an
exciting race on Sunday. And, yeah, looking forward to the weekend.
Q: And after the failure you had on your car last year at this at this race.
Does that change your approach in any way? Perhaps in terms of strategy?
LS: No, I don't think we were doing anything wrong last year in terms of
strategy, I think it was an unexpected tyre failure. And I hope it doesn't
happen again. It wasn't fun having a tyre failure at those speed. We had
great pace and we were on for a good race and those kinds of things are
never fun. So hopefully it doesn't happen again.
Q: You've had the updates on your car for a couple of races. Are you
confident that you found a set-up path with it?
LS: Well, I think we're learning every weekend. It's a very different
package to what we started the season with. So I think every weekend we're
just gaining knowledge, understanding our car. Now this is a very different
track to Monaco. So I think we'll see how we go this weekend. But we're
definitely learning every weekend about the strengths and weaknesses of this
car, the areas we’ve got to work on and I think we're only getting better
understanding the car and that's a good thing.
Q: Best of luck. Thank you, Lance. Yuki, coming to you. Great result for you
here last year, you qualified eighth and finished the race seventh. Does it
make a difference to you returning to a track where you've performed well in
the past?
Yuki TSUNODA: Well, I’m always looking forward to every race weekend. Last
year I got a good result here, qualifying and the race as well. But I think
yeah it’s a bit of a different situation last year. I think the car was
really good and it helped me to be able to be in that kind of position.
Still, I like this track, it’s a nice street circuit. So I think as a team
as well, we are feeling more confident than in the previous races. I think,
in general, as a team, we had a good result there [last year] and Pierre got
P3 as well. So, yeah, hopefully we can achieve those things in this race
weekend as well.
Q: Can we just reflect on Monaco as well, because the team went to Monaco
feeling very confident. The result didn't happen for you. What have you
learned since the race weekend about what happened in Monaco?
YT: I think we started very good. From FP1 to FP3 we were consistently in
the top 10. Qualifying… I think definitely one of the biggest reason was my
contacting with the wall and causing the red flag. And made slightly the
planning we'd done before the session completely messed up and Pierre
couldn't get across the line before the chequered flag. So that was a
biggest reason. And also for my side, I got a damage as well in early stages
so I couldn't go through to Q3 as well. So definitely there was potential to
go through to Q3. So it was a big shame for the team. But I think we learned
a lot of things also from the race as well. So hopefully we don't have that
kind of situation in the future. And yeah, currently we just have to extract
the performance from the car as much as possible and score points.
Q: And how important is it for you to have a clean weekend here?
YT: Yeah, I think first we need a clean race week, to have an exact idea
what position we we're fighting for now, and also for the future to develop
the car. But I think we have good confidence that we can achieve a clean
race week. We learned a lot of things. We did a lot of mistakes already, so
as a team we have shown that we can improve from there, and I'm also happy
with the team, what we are doing now. Also I’ll try to help as much as
possible with my performance to have a clean race week.
Q: Okay, best of luck to you. Thank you, Yuki. Daniel, thank you for
waiting. Former winner here back in 2017. How much you're going to relish
getting back on track?
Daniel RICCIARDO: Very much so, it’s a great track. Yeah, it's just fun,
high speed. We’ve got three street circuits in a row now, which is cool. I
think they're all unique in a way. But I think every street circuit kind of
poses the same challenges and that risk reward factor is always there,
pretty much all the way around the lap. From a set-up point of view is very
different to Monaco. You know, you run lower downforce than in Monaco,
because the straights and the speeds are much different. But yeah, the kind
of the flow and stuff in the middle sector, there are some similarities as
well.
Q: And Daniel, would you would you want to clean weekend looking at the
bigger picture of the race? Or would you welcome a bit of jeopardy?
DR: I welcome everything. I mean, 2017 was one of the most crazy races I was
ever involved in. So I welcome that.
Q: Now, let's go back to Monaco. It was a disappointing weekend ending up
13th. Having been through the weekend with your engineers, would you have
done anything differently in terms of set-up, or is there anything you've
learned since the weekend?
DR: Yeah, reviewing, I think reviewing a race weekend, especially when it's
not, let's say a good result, you'll always kind of look back in hindsight
and say ‘well, yeah, OK, maybe this or that’. I think we started on the
front foot and I think we were kind of in a good place and then it kind of
just got a little away from us, where we understood a bit after that, and a
few days after the race, you know, I spoke to the team with an analysis and
then I was in the factory on Monday and the sim and a few other bits and
pieces there as well with the team. So, we've definitely done our work and
we come into today with a few bits and pieces, which we're going to explore
on the car just to try to get me kind of back in that place. But, yeah, full
confidence moving ahead now.
Q: Daniel, there's an interesting quote from you recently, where you said
that you welcome some of the speculation that's out there about your form.
Can you explain a little more about what you mean by that? Because with
speculation comes increased pressure, surely?
DR: Well, I guess at the end of the day, people care you know. I think it's
why I'm probably being talked about finishing 13th, because people know that
I can be better. And I guess it speaks to my results in the past. And I
guess me, as a driver, people believe in me, simply. I also don't expect an
amazing narrative when I cross the line in 13th. But yeah, I like pressure.
It's a good platform to perform on. And it's also why I signed up to this. I
love it. Success after struggle always tastes a little sweeter. So that's
what I look forward to it.
QUESTIONS FROM THE FLOOR
Q: (Teymur Maksutov – First News Agency) Checo my question is for you. We
can say that you have are the most successful driver for these races. What
does it mean for you to be here in such a special time in your career? Does
it give you maybe inspiration, more power, or you feel maybe pressure?
SP: I think I've always enjoyed Baku. I've had good races here. I've had
tough times also here. It can be very hectic. I generally enjoy it. And,
yeah, it's certainly one of my favourite places to come in the year. So
yeah, I'll tell you after Sunday if it is still as favourite as it is at the
moment.
Q: (Claire Cottingham – Racefans.net) A question for Sergio. Congratulations
on your new contract. I just wondered if you could explain when that was
signed and also have you spoken about having equal measure with your
team-mate now, in terms of obviously what happened with some of the stuff in
the past?
SP: It was signed on Friday before Monaco. We didn't discuss about that,
there's nothing in my contract that says that I need to finish second or
something like that, you know. So it was not a topic in the contract at all.
Q: (Jon Noble – Motorsport.com) To Checo again. First one, in terms of your
mindset, do you feel you've got the car, the confidence in the car, and the
opportunities in Red Bull, to fight for the world championship this year?
And having the contract done so early, does it make a difference in terms of
kind of clearing your head and it not being a distraction, when you have the
uncertainty about your future?
SP: Yeah, I certainly feel that as a driver you want certainty. And you want
to get that stress out of the way. So the earlier the better. It takes so
much so much energy and so much focus to be at 100% weekend by weekend that
you don't need that thinking you know. So it was good that we agreed so
early on the contract. And yeah, I feel like I’ve got a good opportunity. So
the season is still very young, so anything can still happen from now.
Q: (Aaron Deckers – Racing News 365) Question to Daniel. Obviously you said
before that you're going to bring some updates but do you think that just
like Mercedes, you can also perform better at getting more out of the
package you have at the moment?
DR: Absolutely. I think there's still… Probably, like all of us, there are
still ways to perfect these cars and the updates. So yeah, we're certainly
still like experimenting and trialling a few bits and pieces. And obviously,
personally, I still feel I can get more out of this car. So yes to all the
above.
Q: (Jon Noble – Motorsport.com) Checo, we've heard a lot from the team talk
about how much you're much more comfortable in the car this year than you
were last year? Can you just explain a little about what it is from the
handling and stuff that makes you more comfortable? And we hear Max wants
more front end from the car. Do you think that can happen independently of
kind of where you are, in a good position?
SP: I think last year we obviously came in set-up regulations that had been
there for a while. So people that stayed longer in the teams had good and
bad advantage in that regard. So coming new to this car, this philosophy of
car, it was very difficult for me to adapt and to always extract the
maximum. It had a very unique driving style that took me a while to adapt
to. At the end of the season it was fine, but it just took me too long
throughout the season. And I think it's starting from zero it's a good
opportunity for everyone. And especially given that it's my second season
with Red Bull, I think that's something that makes it already a lot better,
knowing my engineers, knowing the people around me. That's a big step. And
yeah, the car, I feel comfortable with it and I'm able to extract the
maximum.
Q: (Matt Coch – Speedcafé) Daniel you've spent time in the simulator since
Monaco. What did you focus on and what did you learn? Did you feel you've
made progress in being more comfortable in the car, and I'm sure he'd
appreciate a comment about his beard.
DR: Well, if the mic wasn't on earlier, strong. It’s beautiful. I liked the
stroke you did with the beard. It was like a kind of a double brush, which
was nice. I look forward to actually seeing you here in person soon so I can
touch it myself. I'll sanitise, it's OK. So, sim stuff. I think the sim is
one part of the learning, the development, but also just going through
analysis of the race and all other bits and pieces, which we will do with
the engineers and the team. And also the factory, you know. Not everyone
travels to the races, so it's a chance to also speak to some factory-based
personnel. And just go through a lot of it. I definitely feel in a good
place coming into this weekend. I think that's one thing where a weekend
like Monaco. Yeah, it's not the result I want but once we've done the
homework then I put it behind me and look forward. Yeah, fully focused and
confident ahead of Baku now.
Q: (John Noble – Motorsport.com) Daniel over the Monaco weekend, there was a
definite change of tone from Zak about your future and the pressure you're
being put under. But he was obviously in America, not in Monaco. Have you
spoken to Zak since the weekend to clarify things? Where do you think things
are at? And are there any doubts about next year and you're expected to
deliver for the team?
DR: You have the opposite. You have no beard at the moment. Visually it's
hard to get used to this. It's really extremes. Well, firstly we've spoken.
We've had a catch up. But nothing really needed to be kind of elaborated on.
I think sometimes I'm guilty of it as well, getting caught up in the media,
and not always kind of making total sense of things. I just like to talk.
No, the clarity is clear for us moving forward. My contracts clear with the
team, until the end of next year I'm fully committed. I’ve certainly voiced
that. And it’s obviously now just on track to show it and show these moments
and these races that I know I'm capable of. And I do truly believe that I
have the full support of the team and we want to do it together.
Q: But Daniel, were you surprised that Zak went public with his thoughts?
DR: I wasn't surprised. I don’t know, maybe I’ve become a little bit immune,
if that's the word, to media. I think I’ve been in the sport for so long and
I think we actually do more and more as we go through the years. So, I don't
I don't really take it probably for its full value or worth all the time.
And I know that some things are taken out of context. So I'm not really one
to go into it and read too much and try to understand it. At the end of the
day, I guess I know the facts between us and know I have with the team, so
yeah, simply I don't get caught up. So I guess I'm not surprised with
anything these days, beard or no beard.
Q: (Claire Cottingham – Recefans.net) Daniel, another question for you. I
don't have a beard. My apologies.
DR: Probably a good thing.
Q: (Claire Cottingham – Recefans.net) Obviously we talk a lot about the
performance in the car and things like that, but for you, have you worked
out what it is that maybe you're struggling with? Is it a confidence sort of
thing where if you've got a good result that you could be happy with them
for the next race, you could build on it? Or how is it for you mentally at
the moment?
DR: I mean, certainly it has its challenges. But I think stripping it back
to the core, I still know what I can do, I still believe I have it and it's
not, you know, it's not like a place of like low confidence or low
self-esteem or anything, where I'm like, ‘I don't think it's possible’. I
really do. I know I can still do it. I think in this sport everything
operates at such a high level and if something's a little bit out of tune,
then it can have a bit of a carry-on effect. So it's really just for me to
get back into that place where I'm in tune, fully in tune, with the car and
then it'll come. I have felt it before, you know, so I think it could come
at any circuit and I think from then it will probably start to build again,
some nice rhythm. A little bit like the second half of last year, where we
started to build some of that. Just get back to that place. It's not as far
away as it probably seems. So I've confidence that it can happen quickly.
Q: (Edd Straw – The Race) Another one for Daniel. Obviously you talked about
getting into that sweet spot with a car. The narrative last year was trying
to adapt to a sort of peculiar McLaren, I guess you'd describe it as. But
now we've seen a bigger change in the cars and inherently there are perhaps
some characteristics that don't entirely get on with your style. And it
seems almost like you’ve kind of got a style that worked really well, that
you almost built up going right back to Toro Rosso days. So do you ]feel
like almost the rules have just gone against you and made your life harder
as well? Because you were really on top probably the last decade’s worth of
cars, and then it's kind of moved away from you again?
DR: Yeah, it's a massive sabotage! I mean, even with the changes this year,
there are certainly still some things, which, you could kind of say carry
over from last year's car and some of the, how do I say…. Like, some things
the car did last year, I think it still does this year, if that makes sense.
So it's still trying to get on top of that. But it's a place where I didn't
really find I'd say these issues, as you said, maybe in the past, and that's
why it's something a little bit new or unfamiliar for me. But, as I said,
it's taken longer than I would have liked to obviously get the results and
the consistency, week in, week out, but it's not far off. I don't want to
keep talking about Monza. But there were obviously times last year, where I
was able to show that I can make it work with this car. And I do think we're
closer this year than last year, funnily enough, so, I’m just going across
the line now with less people in front of me and more behind me and
everything’s sweet.
Q: (Dieter Rencken – Racing News 365) Does the contract for another year
give you a feeling of complacency rather than fighting for your career?
DR: Absolutely not. No. That's one thing I certainly want to… There is a
level of, as Checo said, signing early in a season gives you some comfort,
but that comfort shouldn't be… I'm going to use a word here that I don't
think is [right]… Is it misconstrued? Yes! [Shouldn’t be] misconstrued with
complacency. Absolutely not. And, you know, it's as simple as this: my
results, I want them to be better, I know they can be better and I want to
enjoy that success with the team. So I'm not going to just sit back in 13th
and be complacent or happy about that. Not at all.
DRIVER GROUP 3: Valtteri BOTTAS (Alfa Romeo), Mick SCHUMACHER (Haas),
Pierre GASLY (AlphaTauri), Carlos SAINZ (Ferrari), George Russell (Mercedes)
Q: Valtteri, we'll start with you, please. Now, quietly there were high
expectations within the team prior to Monaco. And you finished in the
points, but were you expecting more from that weekend?
Valtteri BOTTAS: Definitely I was expecting more. When we came into the
weekend, naturally, as our car has been good in slow-speed corners we
thought it would be one of the best opportunities this year but it didn't
quite happen. And I think it's quite a unique track in terms of the
bumpiness, the warps, the cambers on the track, in the corners. So I think
mechanically we probably didn't quite get the most out of the car. And I
think it was a good lesson. I think we've learned a lot from that weekend
that hopefully can possibly help us this weekend.
Q: Well, what about here? Do you think the car strengths will suit this
track as well?
VB: Hopefully it's better. I mean, every track except Monaco we've been
pretty strong compared to the midfield. So this is slightly more towards
normal type of track, although it is a street track, and a bumpy one, but
like I said, with the learnings from Monaco, hopefully, we're going to be
good.
Q: Now you've had both good and bad luck at this racetrack. What's the
secret to a good result?
VB: See the chequered flag, that's the number one thing, because here you
just never know. The qualifying position is maybe not a crucial as in other
places. But yeah, in the race, stay out of trouble, make the right calls
with a strategy. This race is always exciting, and I look forward to it.
Q: Okay, best of luck. Thank you Valtteri. Pierre, coming to you. A bit like
Valtteri, there were high expectations at AlphaTauri as well, going into
Monaco. Just how do you reflect on that whole weekend? What lessons were
learned?
Pierre GASLY: Yeah, obviously disappointed, you know. The whole weekend was
probably our best weekend of the season so far. And yeah, that one session
that we had to make sure not to miss or do any mistakes, unfortunately we
got it wrong. And we paid… Pretty big consequences. Because starting from
the back in Monaco, it's never going to make your Sunday easy and very hard
to recover. Apart from that, a lot of positives to take away from that
weekend in terms of performance, the whole Friday, Saturday, we showed some
good pace and even on Sunday, you know, in the end, I'm really happy with
the performance we showed on Sunday, even though in the end we didn't score
points, we still managed to recover a couple of good positions you know. I
enjoyed these conditions in Monaco, which were very extreme, and I tried to
make a couple of moves on a difficult track, so I think everything was great
apart from our terrible qualifying which cost because cost us the lot.
Q: Well, what about this weekend? You were on the podium at this racetrack
last year? If everything falls for you can you repeat that?
PG: Why not? Why not? You know, everything can happen in Baku. We saw a lot
of drama in the past years. We saw quite unexpected results and podiums, so
I want to be optimistic about this weekend and also just the track layout.
You know, it's only low-speed corners and we know usually that's where we
tend to be the most competitive compared to other tracks with higher-speed
corners, so I think it's looking good. Hopefully we can start and kick our
season off properly, because since the start of the year it hasn't been the
start we would have liked and now I feel Baku can be a definitely a good
starting point.
Q: And Pierre, this is our first opportunity to talk to you since Sergio
Pérez resigned with Red Bull Racing. What does that mean for your own
future? Are you looking outside of the Red Bull family for 2023?
PG: Well, at the moment it’s not a question of looking outside or looking
anywhere. I think my contract situation is pretty clear with Red Bull. And
yeah, it's just, you know, an ongoing conversation with Helmut and the
management to know what's best for all of us. But as I said, you know, to me
it’s been very logical to sign Checo who has been competitive since the
start of the year. So yeah, I mean, no surprise on that side. Obviously it
impacts what's going to happen for my career in the coming years. And based
on that, we just need to we just need to have normal conversation on what's
best going forward.
Q: Would you look at moving outside of Red Bull, just to clarify that?
PG: At the moment, as I say, these are conversations that are ongoing. I
mean, I have nothing more to add. The right decision will be made at the
right time. I know why I'm here. I know what I want to achieve in Formula 1.
I'm a competitive guy and the only thing that matters to me is performance.
You know, we are F1 drivers, here to fight for wins, poles, championships,
and that's what drives me every single day. That's why I'm pushing myself
beyond my limits every single time. And at the end of the day, that's what
will make the difference. But, as I say, for now it's a matter of performing
with AlphaTauri and will take the decision at the right time.
Q: Thank you, Pierre. Carlos, coming to you now. You were a Red Bull driver
for many years. How difficult was it for you to move away from the Red Bull
family, just with a view to the situation Pierre's finding himself in?
Carlos SAINZ: Yeah, it was not easy, but at the same time thanks to Red
Bull, it’s why I made it to Formula 1 way I am a Formula 1 driver right now
and I'm enjoying a career, no? It's a difficult trade, but I understand what
Pierre is going through. I went through something relatively similar. At the
time maybe it caused me a couple of bad situations or bad moments with Red
Bull but now I remain good friends with Helmut with Christian and I only
have grateful words for them, you know. I can understand both positions.
It's a very difficult trade between where you want to be but at the same
time being loyal to the ones who have trusted in you. What I can tell you is
that Pierre for me is a very good driver that is always performing on track
and it’s normal that he has high expectations and wants to go and find a
place where he can fight for wins and some poles so I understand, as I said,
both positions.
Q: Thank you. Now, let's talk Ferrari. How do you reflect on Monaco? I'm
sure you've debriefed with the engineers. Anything you'd have done
differently?
CS: For sure, with the benefit of hindsight we would have done a couple of
things differently. Not so much on my side but probably more maybe on the
other side of the garage. But for me it was a pretty straightforward race. I
think we nailed the strategy I was leading before everyone had to go into
slicks. I was the race leader at that time. So I think we did the right
strategy call and then for details like the pit stop gap to Latifi and then
having to be stuck behind him for two sectors then it was what cost me the
race win. But on my side could we have done something differently? Looking
back at it if I would have pitted one lap earlier I would have more margin
with Checo but I had different traffic in my window. If I would have pitted
one lap late I would have probably got undercut by Checo. So it's just shows
that in Formula 1 for winning everything needs to be on your side. It needs
to be extremely detailed and it needs to click you know, that everything
goes your way one day, and it wasn't meant to be for me day in Monaco. But
I’m confident I drove well and I could have been the race winner with a bit
more luck.
Q: And what about car set-up here in Baku? High or low downforce, what's the
best solution over one lap and over a race distance?
CS: There's always a trade and I think you can get to a race win or a good
result following both directions. You can be a bit quicker in the corners or
a bit quicker on the straight. All our simulations are fairly flat in
telling you that the lap time is going to be the same going one way or the
other you know, so you just need to pick your trade, trust your process,
your instinct and make sure you have a car that gives you confidence,
because here you need a lot of braking confidence, to brake late and to be
close to a wall. So it's a great challenge for us drivers but also for teams
in terms of setting up the car and I think it's a great circuit. I enjoy
coming here and it's been good for Formula 1, I think, Baku recently.
Q: OK, thank you and best of luck this weekend. Mick coming to you now.
Obviously a very harsh end to your race in Monaco. But what positives do you
take from the weekend as a whole?
Mick SCHUMACHER: Yeah, I think that the positives are you know, we came
through Monaco, well, through the FPs though obviously we missed out on FP1,
and then kind of played catch-up until qualifying. But then actually in
qualifying, we were all quite close. You know, we weren't expecting to be as
close to Valtteri and I think we were, so that's already a good positive.
And then yeah, I think in the race, we chose the right strategy direction in
terms of going from full wets to intermediates, and then going to slicks
quite early on. Well, we were kind of forced to go to slicks due to the
front wing being missing. But yeah overall I think we had everything… We
have a lot of things which we can take away from there that are positives,
but obviously the negatives are especially the ones we have to learn from.
Q: Now, the car was obviously a mess after the crash, how were you
physically?
MS: I was fine. Obviously, the impact was, was not actually that harsh and I
was kind of surprised to see the car in two pieces.
Q: And after a crash like that, how do you feel coming into another street
race this weekend? How important is it for you to have a clean weekend?
MS: Well, it's important for me, but also for the team. Obviously we are
kind of tight on spare parts and therefore have to be really cautious on
that side. But nonetheless we're still trying to perform and get the points.
And that's what we're aiming for here.
Q: OK, best of luck this weekend, thank you. George, thanks for waiting. So,
you've said that you expect to be closer to the front runners this weekend.
Can you just explain why?
George RUSSELL: I don't remember saying that, to be honest! No, I think
there’s no secret, we obviously brought some big changes to the car in
Barcelona and it kind of changed our whole philosophy a little bit and where
the strengths of our car were and the weaknesses were. And obviously, Monaco
is a very unique race weekend altogether. So I think this will be slightly
more in line with the performance we saw in Barcelona.
Q: Now, clearly, the team has made great progress with the car. If you took
it back to Bahrain now. How much faster would it be?
GR: Hopefully it would be faster. But I think I don't think it's necessarily
much faster at the moment but it's given us a direction where we think we
can get a lot more out of it, whereas the car we had in Bahrain, that was
sort of its maximum potential, and we couldn’t really improve it from there
on in. Sometimes you got to take a small step back to take three steps
forward. And I think we're in that transitional process at the moment. And I
think it'll be a few more races before we started to see us hopefully
fighting with the Ferrari and Red Bull.
Q: So if that requires a few more races, are you hoping for a little bit of
a typically chaotic race here in Baku?
GR: Yeah, I think, yes, it’s definitely welcome in our position, I don't
think it's going to be straightforward. I think we'd love to be straight on
the pace here but I think we'll be in our usual position, just sort of
behind the front two, and probably just ahead of the midfield group. There's
some really fast guys out there in the low speed corners and that could
throw up a bit of a surprise. But hopefully, come Sunday we'll be able to
recover that. And yeah, let's see. It's definitely welcome. As long as we're
on the right side of it, it’s all good.
Q: Now, you said recently that prior to the start of the season you expected
to have won a race by this point in the year. Do you take any satisfaction
from the fact that you're the only driver to have scored points in every
race so far?
GR: Yeah, definitely. You got to look at the positives. And you've got to
look at things rationally. And we can't be disappointed that we haven't won
a race this season with the package we've had. And we're in this development
phase and I think it's been pretty well optimised. As a team, I think we've
done a great job to maximise the points available to us. So you've got to
take that as a positive and try and continue this momentum forward. And
hopefully when we have a faster car, we'll be in good shape to fight for
those victories.
QUESTIONS FROM THE FLOOR
Q: (Scott Mitchell – The Race) Open to all five of you really. Next year
could have been the introduction of a driver salary cap, 2023 was the time
that that was mooted as potentially bringing that in. It looks like if that
is going to happen at all, it will be a bit further away. I don't imagine
any driver is particularly happy about the idea of their earnings being
limited. But when we asked Max about this earlier, and Lando, they both
raised the point that it could have a knock-on effect in junior categories,
because there are contracts that get done, support from backers who then
take a percentage of earnings if a driver ever gets to Formula 1. Is that a
slightly charitable interpretation from those two guys? Or do you think that
is a serious potential knock-on effect that will put off people potentially
investing in young drivers if there is a limit on their earnings in the
future?
VB: I think it's a valid point. And that that can happen, because in the end
when you come up the different categories you need financial support and
eventually the investors who invest in you they are expecting a good
payback. And if that is being limited, with already being this big risk for
the investor, it will become an even bigger risk. I'm sure no driver is
voting for the salary cap, because we feel like we earn a decent amount from
doing what we do, risking our life and working as hard as we can and
actually being the centre of the show, let's say, F1 is really booming at
the moment, you know, we're doing more and more engagement with the fans,
more and more work off the track. And, yeah, for me, it doesn't quite make
sense that at this time that F1 is going up that the drivers’ salaries
should go down,
PG: I completely agree with Valtteri. You know, I think he’s good to two
valid points and that's what we said. We know it's an expensive sport. We
know to make it today to Formula 1, to finance all your career through, even
just through karting and coming through Formula 4, Formula 3, Formula 2,
we're talking like big numbers and you need financial support. People need
to take risk to invest in yourself if they see potential and it's normal
that these people expect returns. And if we start to put this salary cap for
sure it's not going to push these people to help young drivers. And I've had
a lot of friends unfortunately who would have needed this backing when they
were younger and they had the talent to make their way up. And unfortunately
they didn't have the chance. And I don't think by moving that direction
we're going to give more opportunities to these young talents without
financial backing. So, I think we’ve got to be careful on that side. And as
Valtteri said, as well, the sport is booming. We have more and more races,
more and more interest. I think financially F1 is really growing, which is a
very positive thing and very positive for everybody involved in the
business. And exactly, it doesn't really make sense to cap us at the time
when they asking us for more. But think this is just a side comment. I think
this knock-on effect it could have on the younger guys and young talents is
not really going in the direction that will be beneficial for the entire
sport.
CS: I agree. You just need to see what it costs, you know, to run an F2, an
F3 campaign nowadays. We're talking about millions of euros and whose father
has one or two millions in the bank to spend for his son to compete in a
racing category without knowing that he's going to make it to Formula 1. And
if on top of that then you tell them that when he gets to Formula 1, he's
going to get capped after wasting two million to run in F2. Who's going to
be interested in investing? No, I think it's a very fair point. Also for
junior teams like Ferrari and Red Bull, it's a complicated matter. But more
than anything, is it the right thing to do nowadays? If you tell me Formula
1 is in crisis because of COVID and the sport is going in a bad direction,
the drivers are earning too much for what the sport is generating, then I
would tell you, maybe there's a chance or a point where we can all agree
that maybe there is something that could be done. But when the sport is
booming? You guys were all in Miami. You saw the amount of events, the
amount of things we were doing, how busy we've been recently as racing
drivers and we just keep hearing that the championship is going to grow to
25 races, even 30 in the future. And now when the sport is booming, you want
to cap us, no? I find it a very illogical idea right now. And an idea tha
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