Feature
What the teams said – Qualifying in Spain
Share
McLaren
When Piastri topped FP3, Q1 and Q2, it looked a tough ask for Norris to reel him in today. But on their first laps in Q3, Norris came out second and timed his out-lap beautifully to pick up a little tow from his team mate. That made all the difference as he grabbed provisional pole by a tiny margin. But with he pressure on and no tow incoming, Norris made a couple of errors on his last lap. Piastri did not, nailing his effort to grab pole by over two-tenths of a second – the biggest margin this season.
Oscar Piastri, 1st, 1:11.546
“I’m very happy with today. It’s been a good weekend so far. The car’s been mega today, and I feel like I’ve been able to put in some good laps. Thank you to the team for all the hard work. This was very different twelve months ago, so to have turned it around in the best way is a great result. We’ll make sure we try to get a good start tomorrow and bring home the points.”
Lando Norris, 2nd, 1:11.755
“A decent result today. I think the pace is definitely there. We just didn’t get the most out of the car on a couple of corners, but it’s a good result for the team. A nice one-two, and a good place to start for tomorrow. We’ve got a lot of quick guys behind us, so we won’t count them out, but we’ve got the best car underneath us. We’ll do our best to bring home maximum points.”
Andrea Stella, Team Principal
"We’re pleased to come away from Qualifying with a Spanish GP front-row lockout for the first time since 1998. The team have done a great job to bring a competitive car here this weekend. Both Oscar and Lando put good laps in throughout Qualifying. On Oscar’s side, he executed a great lap and managed to get everything that was available from the car. On Lando’s side, he just lost a bit of time on the exit of a couple of corners in Q3 but was still competitive enough to secure the front-row lockout.
“We’ll work hard tonight to plan for tomorrow’s race. The competition are not far behind, so we need to make sure we capitalise on these good starting positions. It should be an exciting race for the fans.”
1 / 3
Red Bull
Mixed fortunes in the Red Bull garage yet again. Verstappen seemed to make a step forward overnight, and while he did not have the pace for the McLarens, he did have enough speed to take the fight to Mercedes. In the end he lapped in exactly the same time as Russell, and grabbed P3 by dint of setting his lap time fractions earlier. But Tsunoda seemed to struggle all day, and exited in Q1. Not just that but he was slowest of all, despite a clean-looking last lap. A scruffy previous effort might have damaged his floor to explain his lack of pace, but he will have a tough afternoon tomorrow regardless.
Max Verstappen, 3rd, 1:11.848
“In the end, P3 was a good result for us as our first run in Q3 was a bit difficult. I couldn’t find the same grip as I had before so, going into the final lap, getting our references were a bit difficult. The positive is that the car was a lot nicer to drive and in a decent window but we couldn’t really extract any more out of it and match the McLarens’ pace. We were just not fast enough out there: the gap to McLaren is quite big at the moment which will make things difficult to gain places tomorrow and we will just need to do our own race. Today, I didn’t expect to be any closer and we did a good job putting it in P3. We will try our best tomorrow and see what we can do with the car and hopefully we can target a podium. It will be difficult but doesn’t mean we won’t try."
Yuki Tsunoda, 20th, 1:13.385
“Since FP1 this weekend something has felt off, and it’s a pretty tough result as we’ve tried everything. We’ve struggled with grip issues and the feeling of the car eating through the tyres all weekend. We tried to solve the issue as much as possible but I don’t think we were able to cure it. We’ve tried multiple setups this weekend and it’s strange because my lap today at the end of Q1 was pretty clean. It’s a shame that there were no results today and the pace didn’t match when I was feeling more confident in the car. The positive to take away is that we’ve built more consistency throughout the weekend and have made no big mistakes. I will try my best as always for tomorrow to bring back some points, and luckily Barcelona is a track that you can overtake on."
Christian Horner, Team Principal
"A game of two halves during Qualifying. Congratulations to McLaren, they delivered today with both cars and locked out the front row. In practice we were circa three tenths off them and that’s proved to be the case over a single lap. Now of course we have the race tomorrow which is a different challenge so hopefully we can have a strong day tomorrow. Yuki has struggled all weekend. We went up a little on the downforce to try and help him but it's difficult to understand, we will need to have a look at it. Unfortunately, he will have quite a bit to do tomorrow to make his way up the pack."
1 / 2
Mercedes
Spain has proved a happy hunting ground for Mercedes in the past, and today was no exception. Both cars made it to Q3 – Russell with ease, Antonelli just about doing enough. Once there, the teenager only had one set of fresh tyres but put them to good use in grabbing sixth. Russell looked on for P3, but in the end had to settle for fourth as he set exactly the same time as Verstappen. That shows how tight the margins are, but with the slipstream tomorrow, Russell could be dangerous from that slot.
HIGHLIGHTS: Relive the Qualifying action as Piastri snatches pole position from Norris in Spain
George Russell, 4th, 1:11.848
"It feels good to be back near the front of the grid today and it is nice to be in this groove again after a tough Monaco Grand Prix. The car felt good today and being with the same lap time as Max (Verstappen) is not surprising. Except for Monaco, we’ve been in the top five every single race since the start of the season, and we know we have the pace to challenge our competitors on a Saturday.
"We do know it is still going to be a challenging race with these hot ambient temperatures and a track temperature forecast to be in the low 50°C degrees. Just like Bahrain though, we’ve been able to manage the tyres better when they’re on the hardest end of the Pirelli spectrum. Hopefully that will be the same case tomorrow.
"The McLarens are still the dominant force this weekend and it will be a challenge to fight with them. However, a podium is what we are realistically aiming for, and I do think this is achievable tomorrow. I started P4 in this same race last year and ended up in the lead after turn one; I’ll certainly try to replicate that tomorrow!"
Kimi Antonelli, 6th, 1:12.111
"After two difficult race weekends, it is good to be back in a good rhythm. It took me some time to build up my speed at the start of the session, but I started to gain a lot of confidence lap after lap.
"Unfortunately, with only one set of new Soft tyres for Q3, I was slightly limited. I wasn’t able to take quite as much risk, and I know there was a couple of tenths to grab here and there, but overall, P6 is a great come back from where I had been earlier in the weekend.
"It is going to be a difficult race tomorrow with these hot temperatures. Preserving the tyres will be a real challenge for the whole field. That is why we deliberately have focused on our long run pace this weekend as we know it is an area we need to improve in. Tomorrow will be a good test of the progress we have made, and I am hopeful that we can put in a competitive showing."
Toto Wolff, Head of Mercedes-Benz Motorsport
"We were back to being at the competitive end of the grid today which was encouraging. Obviously, it is a bit painful to see George starting P4 when he could have been P3 having set the same lap time as Max (Verstappen). We know that race pace is what matters around here, rather than your specific starting position, so we are looking ahead to tomorrow now. If the temperatures stay as they were today, it is going to be a difficult afternoon for everyone tomorrow. Preserving the tyres will be a struggle, as we have seen in previous hot races not only this year but around this circuit before.
"That is why we decided before the weekend to focus on improving our long run pace, given it is the main area of improvement we need to make with this car. Starting with both cars in the top six gives us the chance for a solid result. We will need to show that we have made progress with our race pace though to stand a chance of converting that promise into genuine performance. Let's see how the opening lap goes and from there, our main objective will be to preserve the tyres lap after lap and still ensure we can post competitive lap times."
Andrew Shovlin, Trackside Engineering Director
"We could have done a little better than P4 and P6 today, which is frustrating. George matched Max’s (Verstappen) lap time to the thousandth and wasn't far behind Lando (Norris), but the smallest of differences still count. Kimi had to use more sets of the Soft tyre than was ideal on his way to Q3. That left him with just one new tyre set, and it was hard to judge the grip step on a cooling track. He felt he left a bit of lap time on the table but it was still a good effort to split the Ferraris.
"The race is going to be tough on the tyres tomorrow. It’s really hot here in Barcelona and that's going to make it hard to keep temperatures under control. We have done plenty of high fuel work in free practice though, so hopefully both drivers will be as well prepared as possible. It is an area we need to improve in, so tomorrow’s race will offer a good test of the progress we’ve hopefully made."
1 / 2
Ferrari
Hamilton complained about his gearbox in FP3, but whatever the team did between the sessions worked and he was competitive throughout. They did get both cars into Q3 which was a good first step, but Leclerc didn’t have any fresh tyres left so only ran the once. Hamilton was able to have two goes, his second quick enough for fifth - which was a good effort considering how unhappy he was with his car yesterday.
Charles Leclerc, 7th, 1:12.131
"I knew it would be a difficult qualifying. We only had 4 new sets of Softs for this qualifying session compared to others who had 5, but we made that choice and I think we can put up a good fight starting from P7 tomorrow. Our race pace looks good and we have a different selection of tyres available to us compared to those starting around us, so we will see if our decision pays off."
Lewis Hamilton, 5th, 1:12.045
"FP3 wasn’t ideal, but P5 in quali shows the progress we’ve made since the start of the triple-header. The car felt good, so I’m going all in tomorrow, aiming for a podium finish. The field’s tight, just a few tenths between the top ten, so it’s going to be a proper fight. There’s still work to do tonight, but we’ll stay focused and make sure we’re ready for the race."
Fred Vasseur, Team Principal
"From the start of the weekend, we made a strategic decision with Charles to prioritise the race, choosing to keep two sets of Medium tyres and today we also opted to keep one set of Softs for the race that had only done an out-in lap, so we decided to sacrifice some performance in qualifying. As for his actual grid position, it’s probable he wasn’t helped by the clouds that appeared at the very end of the session. We believe this decision will pay off in the race given the expected high temperatures and high tyre degradation.
"As for Lewis, I think qualifying went pretty well for him, even if we had to use two sets of Softs early in the session. He put together a good lap in Q2, immediately making the cut and his Q3 was solid so we can expect a good race from him."
1 / 2
Alpine
Colapinto cannot buy any luck right now. He was faster than his team mate on their first runs in Q1, but as he came out for his last run his car ceased working. That left him parked in the fast lane of the pits, with the rest of the field forced to drive around him. Alpine will be hard at work diagnosing the issue overnight, but no matter what they find, he starts down the back. Gasly at least gave the team something to cheer about with P8, as he chases a first Grand prix top 10 since Bahrain.
Pierre Gasly, 8th, 1:12.199
“I am happy with the Qualifying performance. We definitely needed that after a frustrating couple of weeks and it was important for us to bounce back and be top of the midfield. The top four teams certainly have an edge so to be in that position today is good and I am happy for everyone at the team. We tried some things in Free Practice 3 but reverted back on our set-up ahead of Qualifying. We executed three good sessions and, in the end, reached Q3, put in a really solid lap, and line up eighth place on the grid for tomorrow. We have given ourselves a chance to fight for points now but we know it will be a different story with strategy and tyre degradation. Let’s see how it goes and I am pleased to be in the mix. Now I am going to enjoy the Champions League Final tonight and aim to come back tomorrow morning with a smile and ready to race.”
Franco Colapinto, 19th, 1:13.334
“After how the car was feeling during the first runs in Q1, it is a pity we did not have a chance to attempt a final push lap and give ourselves a chance to progress. It felt like something broke on the car, which meant I could not pull away in the queue in the Pit Lane. Overall, the pace of the car felt good in that session and was the best it has felt all weekend, which is testament to the work the team has done to turn it around from where we were yesterday. From where we are starting, we need to look at what is possible with the strategy as it is quite difficult to overtake here at this track. Today was a tough one to take given how the car felt. But it sometimes happens, and we go through those highs and lows as a team and will look to bounce back tomorrow.”
Flavio Briatore, Executive Advisor
“It was a much better performance in Qualifying from where we were across the weekend with the drivers much happier with the balance of the car. The team worked hard after the practice sessions and made improvements, which showed by getting one car into Q3 with Pierre doing a good job. Franco was also looking more comfortable and showing good pace until the issue in the Pit Lane that prevented him from doing a final lap. It is always disappointing when there is an issue that stops you going out on track, so we need to get the car back and check what caused it to make sure we address it as a team.”
1 / 2
Racing Bulls
With both cars in the top 10 in final practice, hopes were high of a strong Qualifying for Racing Bulls. In the end Hadjar delivered another Q3 slot, but could only run once as he had run out of fresh tyres. Ninth was still a good effort, while Lawson had to settle for P13 with the gaps incredibly tight out there. He’ll hope to move forward tomorrow, in what should be a two-stop race.
Isack Hadjar, 9th, 1:12.252
"I’m really happy with today’s result. It feels great to make it into Q3 again, that was almost the best we could have hoped for. At one point, we were worried we might not even make it out of Q1, so we can be proud of the job we did. The car felt good and kept improving with every lap. We made the right changes at the right time, and everything came together perfectly. Things are looking promising for tomorrow. I’m confident heading into the race, it will come down to true pace and managing either a one or two-stop strategy. If we nail the start, we’ll be in the fight for points.”
Liam Lawson, 13th, 1:12.763
"It was a good start to Quali. We were always chasing balance throughout the session, but the speed was strong. The car felt really good and I thought we had a great final lap in Q2, so we'll be reviewing it as a team ahead of tomorrow, particularly given this was the first time the car lacked speed during the weekend. There are opportunities for overtaking here, so as always we'll be pushing for points.”
Andrea Landi, Deputy Technical Director - Design
“Barcelona is a great track, it is the first real moment during the season where we get important answers on car performance, with the Qualifying session bringing most of those answers. Here everything counts, downforce, drag, efficiency, balance, wind sensitivity; tyres have hard life here around too, so all in all, an extremely interesting day. After Friday’s running, the Team here in Barcelona, together with support from home, could analyse data and prepare some more test items for today, which proved to give good refinement to an already reasonable baseline. Our day was good, achieving Q3 with Isaak in P9, missing P8 by only 50ms. Liam performed well but struggled to put it all together and given the tight field, didn't quite manage to reach the last Quali session. Tomorrow will be a long race, with tyre management being a key element for success."
1 / 2
Aston Martin
Alonso looked strong from the off on Saturday, and made it to Q3 yet again. He came out midway through the segment, opting for clean air over track evolution and wound up 10th as he chases his first points of the year. Stroll exited in Q2, not quite on his team mate’s pace here so far this weekend. He was also called to the stewards to explain why he missed being weighed at the end of Q2.
WATCH: Ride onboard with Piastri for his spectacular pole position lap in Spain
Fernando Alonso, 10th, 1:12.284
"It's been a good weekend so far, and getting into Q3 shows we are in the fight for points. It's the third consecutive Q3 for us so I'm pleased with that.
"We've made some progress since Miami where we were fighting at the back and Barcelona is always a true test. It shows our update package has given us a step forward.
"Hopefully we can finish the job tomorrow, especially here at home in front of this amazing support."
Lance Stroll, 14th, 1:13.058
"It's been a tough weekend for us so far – the car hasn't been easy to handle all weekend and it's been challenging to put clean laps together. Nevertheless, we made it through to Q2 and we take any small wins we can get at the moment.
"We have lots of areas of the car that we need to look into and improve, but we'll see what we can do tomorrow starting from P14."
Andy Cowell, Team Principal
"It was a mixed Qualifying session for us today. Fernando left nothing out there in front of his home crowd putting in strong laps every session and he worked exceptionally hard to get everything out of the car.
"Lance put in a good Q1 lap but has been struggling to find balance in the car so far this weekend and that is something the team has to improve going forward. The grid is very tight, and we will work hard tomorrow to be in the points."
1 / 2
Williams
Williams did not expect this track to suit them, but the aim was to get one car into Q3. That they did not manage, Albon coming the closest with P11. But Sainz had an even harder time of it, exiting in Q1 for the first time in 18 months and at his home race to boot. He’ll be hoping their race pace is stronger than their one-lap pace, but it remains to be seen how much progress he can make as he aims to keep his points-scoring streak on home soil alive.
Alex Albon, 11th, 1:12.641
"The margins are so small but Q3 was there for the taking today. I had very limited low-fuel running due to missing FP1, and after having an issue in FP3, we went into this session compromised. Barcelona exposes some of the weaknesses in the DNA of this car, so all things considered, I think this is a good result at a track that’s challenging for us."
Carlos Sainz, 18th, 1:13.203
"Very disappointing day. After our struggles yesterday we made some good changes overnight that put us in contention for a good result. Unfortunately, the delay in the pit lane due to an issue of the Alpine meant I was out of position for my second push in Q1 and had to overtake five or six cars during my lap. With such a tight field, having that amount of dirty air made me lose valuable tenths and that put a premature ending to my session in Q1, which is not good.
"I’ll do my best to fight through the field tomorrow and give my home crowd something to cheer for. Let’s see what we can do."
James Vowles, Team Principal
"A really close grid. Between Carlos and getting through to Q2 was a matter of milliseconds and with Alex, I know we had more potential in the car. We lost a little bit of time with traffic, both cars at the end of sector three, which ultimately decided our day.
"However, I’m encouraged. Despite where we were, we knew this was a difficult track for us, but actually across the weekend, we found good progress on how to move forward and there’s more learning to come tomorrow. This learning will enable us to be strong not just at future tracks in 2025, but also as we develop our 2026 car."
1 / 2
Kick Sauber
Bortoleto has looked competitive here, and seemed comfortable with his car and at this track. So much so, he beat his team mate over one lap for the third time in the last four races – no mean feat considering Hulkenberg’s one lap prowess. In the end, the rookie settled for P12, a career-best Qualifying as he chases his first F1 points. Hulkenberg was a few places further back after exiting in Q1.
EXPLAINED: Everything you need to know about the Spanish Grand Prix front wing Technical Directive
Nico Hulkenberg, 16th, 1:13.190
“We definitely had the potential to progress today, but unfortunately, my final lap wasn’t as clean as it could’ve been. I picked up quite a bit of understeer in the last sector, which cost me around two tenths—and in such a tight Q1, that made all the difference.
“That said, the upgrades we brought this weekend have clearly delivered a step forward. Right from the first lap, I had a much better feeling in the car. The handling felt more consistent, and the overall balance has improved—that’s definitely encouraging. Looking ahead to tomorrow, starting from P16 means we’ll have to deal with traffic, which is always a challenge on a fast, flowing circuit like this. It won’t be easy, but we’ll regroup tonight and explore all strategic options to move forward.”
Gabriel Bortoleto, 12th, 1:12.756
“I’m very happy with how qualifying went today—this has been the best result so far for me this season, and a very solid day overall. The upgrades we brought this weekend seem to be working, which is definitely encouraging: the team deserves it, as everyone has been working very hard. I’m glad that we are moving towards the right direction now, and that we have been able to show our potential today, but I’m also well aware that this is just Saturday: the main job is done tomorrow. I think tomorrow’s race is going to be a lot about tyre management, so it’ll be crucial to make the right calls and hopefully make a further step forward.”
Jonathan Wheatley, Team Principal
“Coming out of FP3 today, the big positive was that both drivers seemed happy with the upgrades, so I would like to thank everyone in Hinwil for all the hard work in getting them onto both cars. On a circuit as aero-dependent as Barcelona, that extra confidence—especially in the braking zones—makes a real difference. In qualifying, following a small mistake in the last sector, Nico missed out on Q2 by just 0.051 seconds. So, P16 doesn’t reflect the fact that he was capable of making it through. Gabriel progressed to Q2 with a solid P10, then delivered two really clean laps to finish P12, just shy of making it into Q3. This equals our best race qualifying of the season and also marks Gabriel’s best qualifying result in Formula One so far. Our focus for tomorrow’s race is to be in the mix for points.”
1 / 2
Haas
Haas were struggling in FP3, so it was no surprise to see them lose a car in Q1. In the end it was Ocon who exited, perhaps still paying the price for sitting out FP1 and losing some track time here. Bearman was forced to use all his tyres to make it out of Q1, and thus only had used rubber to run in Q2. He wound up 15th on what was a bit of a tricky day for the team.
Esteban Ocon, 17th, 1:13.201
“It was close out there, just a tenth would’ve got me into Q2. It’s far from over this weekend though, it’s a long race, you need to look after your tyres, and there’s going to be a lot of pit stop strategies. There’s a long way to go and hopefully, we can optimize things and move forward.”
Oliver Bearman, 15th, 1:13.315
“We used all of our new tyres to get into Q2, and we managed that which is positive. We were probably faster than we expected, so I think if I had a new set in Q2 we would’ve been challenging to get into Q3 potentially. That’s a shame, but prior to the session I think we were quite clearly lacking performance to be where we just qualified, so I think we can be positive about that. It’s so hot here, I think it’s definitely going to change the way that we do things and I don’t know how the strategy will go, but we’ll try and have a good one tomorrow.”
Ayao Komatsu, Team Principal
“The good thing was that we improved the car quite a lot from FP3. The team has worked really hard from FP1 – of course, we need to figure out why it took so long to improve the car – but the car was performing reasonably well. The sad thing was that because we got there late, we used three sets of soft tyres to get out of Q1. Ollie did a very good job to get out of Q1 in P12, so that was definitely better than expected, but then we had no new tyres for Q2. Everything has a knock-on impact but the car and its ultimate potential, I think it’s close to Q3 today and if Ollie had a new tyre, he would’ve been fighting for Q3. The other positive for tomorrow is that we have decent race tyres, all compounds available to us, so we have pretty good options to choose from, so that’s our focus for tonight now that we’ve improved the car.”
1 / 2
Pirelli
Mario Isola, Motorsport Director
“The Barcelona-Catalunya track is always a severe test for car and tyre performance. Today we saw one team yet again monopolising the top two spots on the timesheets, but behind them, it's very tight, and I expect the race will reflect that. It will be fascinating to see how the teams approach a race that always puts significant stress on the tyres. A two-stop strategy is almost obligatory, and I reckon the Medium and Soft compounds will see most of the action. We saw yesterday that the Hard tyre tends to slide too much and the lap times compared to those on the softer compounds reflect that.
“On paper, the Soft-Medium-Soft strategy is fastest, as was the case last year. Three drivers, Ferrari’s Leclerc and the Haas drivers Ocon and Bearman, have saved two sets of Mediums, clearly aiming to use them in the race. For those starting on Softs to make the most of the extra grip early on, with some drivers having new sets of the C3, the first stint should extend to at least lap 12. Then, based on simulations, they’ll aim to stretch the second stint to around lap 40, finishing with a final Soft stint. With a lighter car, that last set should be enough to get to lap 66. Drivers aiming for a more balanced race and planning to use the second set of Mediums will likely stop a few laps earlier. It’s also worth noting that undercuts are particularly powerful on this track.
“As for the performance of the C3 in qualifying, we saw its worth over a flying lap, as had already been evident in the three free practice sessions. The sudden seven degree drop in temperature in Q3, definitely saw the track get quicker, which paid off for those who had chosen to delay their last run as much as possible.”
YOU MIGHT ALSO LIKE
