On Track

Abu Dhabi GP: Lance and Sebastian qualify 13th and 15th

Aston Martin Cognizant Formula One™ Team secured a double Q2 appearance in qualifying for the 2021 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.

Drivers Lance Stroll and Sebastian Vettel will start the 2021 finale from 13th and 15th on the grid at the Yas Marina Circuit.

Lance

Lance took to the track at the start of Q1, and, on the Soft tyre, posted a benchmark 1.24.664 lap time.

The Canadian failed to improve on his second run in the session, but a third hot lap yielded a three-tenth improvement to 1.24.364.

Lance boxed for fresh tyres moments before the Red Flag was waved with six minutes remaining after Mick Schumacher dislodged a bollard in the final corner of the Yas Marina Circuit.

When qualifying resumed, Lance briefly slipped into the bottom five but improved on his final run to progress to Q2 in 13th with a 1.24.061 lap.

In Q2, Lance posted a 1.24.076 lap time at the start of the session before fitting a new set of Softs for his final qualifying run.

A 1.24.066 effort meant he narrowly missed out on Q3 and will start the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix from 13th.

"I think P13 was around the maximum we could have achieved today. We made some changes to the set-up of the car today and I am happier with the balance, which is positive for tomorrow.

"We will have a free choice of tyres for the start of the race and plenty of options with strategy, so there are opportunities to move forward in the race.

"We should be fighting to score points. That would be a nice way to mark my 100th race in Formula One."

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Sebastian

Sebastian posted a 1.25.046 benchmark at the start of Q1 on the Soft tyres and improved as the session progressed.

With a 1.24.664 lap time on his second run, Sebastian improved to 15th, and fitted fresh Soft tyres before the Red Flag caused by Schumacher.

On his final run in the first part of qualifying, he posted a 1.24.225 lap, and, despite being impeded by Alpine’s Esteban Ocon, advanced to Q2.

The German abandoned his first run at the start of the second quarter but registered a 1.24.305 run on his second attempt.

After fitting new Soft tyres, Sebastian failed to improve on his final push lap, meaning he will start Sunday's race from 15th on the grid.

"It was not our day – mainly because of problems with traffic. I was held up [by Esteban Ocon] in Q1, but just made it through to Q2 where there were even more problems.

"All the drivers were backing up at the end of the lap and we saw some drivers jumping the queues.

"I had to come to a standstill and, as a result, I lost too much tyre temperature, which ruined my final quick lap. I should have been more selfish because other drivers do not respect the agreement to stay in order before they start their lap.

"We all end up at the same place because we try to maximise the sessions [with the same timings] but then you have the same drivers who always jump the queue.

"So we start from P15 and hopefully we can overtake a lot of cars tomorrow. Our race pace should be competitive so let us see what we can do."