Driver debrief by Aramco: British GP
Sebastian was able to work his way into the points in Aston Martin Aramco Cognizant Formula One™ Team's home race at Silverstone, while Lance just missed out on a top-10 finish.
Both Sebastian and Lance battled hard in the British Grand Prix to work their way up the order towards the end of the race.
Starting towards the back of the pack, the drivers ran differing strategies for much of the race, but a late Safety Car put them both in the mix for points right until the chequered flag.
Sebastian was able to hold onto a points finish, while Lance raced to 11th.
Sebastian
Starting 18th, Sebastian escaped major damage after contact on the opening lap with Alex Albon who had braked to avoid a major incident that happened in front.
He had worked his way up to 13th, but the race was resumed in grid order so took the restart in 15th.
From there, he started on the Soft tyres and pitted on lap six for the Medium tyres.
He then raced for 33 laps on those tyres, gaining positions as others made pitstops, before a Safety Car was brought out following a mechanical failure for Esteban Ocon.
Race report by Aramco
Both Sebastian and Lance were able to fight their way up the order in Aston Martin Aramco Cognizant Formula One™ Team's home race, with Sebastian finishing in the points while Lance just missed out
Sebastian stopped for a second time during the Safety car, opting for another set of Medium tyres. Swift work from the mechanics allowed him to return to the track in seventh place for the restart.
Faster cars were able to get by on the Soft tyres, but Sebastian was able to hold on and finish in ninth place for two points with a best time of 1.32.471 on the final lap.
It is nice to score points on my birthday and in the team's home race.
"It is nice to score points on my birthday and in the team's home race, especially when you consider where we started [in 18th]. Overall, I think it was a decent race and a good recovery.
"The first start before the red flag was very chaotic. I had made a really good getaway and it launched me into a gap nearly alongside Alex [Albon]. Then I got squeezed and everything backed up as a reaction to the accident ahead. I braked but could not avoid making contact with Alex.
"The most important thing is that everybody involved is fine."
Lance
Lance gained positions in the opening corner amid the collisions ahead, but had to start at the back once again after the red flag shuffled the order back to the grid start.
He ran until lap 16 on the Medium tyres and after a pitstop, returned to the track on the Hard compound.
When Esteban Ocon’s Alpine brought out the Safety Car on lap 39, Lance was able to stop for a second time for Medium tyres to run to the finish.
Based on the race today, I see potential for the races to come.
In the final 10 laps after the Safety Car period, Lance was able to progress up into 11th position with a move on Nicholas Latifi to finish just 1.557 seconds outside of the points-paying positions.
His best lap was a 1.32.379, which was set on the final lap of the race.
"I thought we had a reasonably positive race. The cars showed much better pace than yesterday, so it is a shame I was not able to score some points.
"We are still learning and understanding the upgrades but based on the race today, I see potential for the races to come. I am glad Zhou [Guanyu] and Alex are okay after the crash at the start."
All in. All welcome. All celebrated. Sign up to open up a world of I / AM benefits and once-in-a-lifetime experiences.
