Saudi Arabian GP: Mixed qualifying for Williams Racing

Logan Sargeant:
"We’ve had the car in a good place all weekend and it was definitely capable of getting through to Q2. Our first lap of Qualifying was right where we needed to be, but a very compromised outlap on the second run meant we couldn’t get the tyre in the right window. It looks like tomorrow will be a high-pace race and our long runs look okay, so hopefully we can make up some places."

Alex Albon:
"I’m mostly happy with P12 but I know we’re still missing Q3 by a few tenths, so we’re a little further from where we want to be but it’s good progress. We have good race pace and I think we’ll be able to manage the tyres reasonably well tomorrow. Whilst we struggled a little bit today, our race pace looks to be slightly better than some of our competitors, so we’ll see what we can do with it tomorrow."

Dave Robson, Head of Vehicle Performance:
"A lot of good work was done overnight, both at the track and in Grove, and we were able to improve the car as a result. Conditions were similar to yesterday but getting the tyres just in the right window whilst also managing the traffic remained very difficult throughout today.

Logan unfortunately kissed the wall early in FP3. Although the contact was minor, it did enough damage to the front suspension to mean that he was unable to run again during the session. In this context, his opening lap in Q1 was very impressive but he was unable to really build on the strong start as Q1 progressed.

Alex was able to build his confidence and refine his tyre preparation during Q1 but was unable to complete his final lap having lost a lot of time coming up behind the Ferrari; he was lucky to progress to Q2 based on an earlier lap. Once in Q2, he was able to find a good rhythm and adapt his tyre preparation to the ever-cooling track condition. After the red flag we opted to adjust his run plan to ensure a clear outlap for his final attempt. Despite not having the tyres in a perfect window for the start of that lap, he was able to set his best time of the event and finish in 12th.

The tyres behave quite differently here in race conditions and so the drivers will need to use their experience from FP2 to find the right level of tyre management to race hard tomorrow. Both have an excellent opportunity to progress during the race and we will do everything we can to give them that chance."

Track: Jeddah Corniche Circuit, Saudi Arabia