FIA post-qualifying press conference – Las Vegas

1. George Russell (Mercedes), 2. Carlos Sainz (Ferrari), 3. Pierre Gasly (Alpine)
TRACK INTERVIEWS
(Conducted by James Hinchcliffe)
Q: George Russell, you are pole sitter for the Las Vegas Grand Prix, the fourth of your career, third of the season. Tell me, coming into this weekend, did you and the Mercedes team think you guys were going to have that kind of pace?
George RUSSELL: Honestly, absolutely not. It feels incredible to be back on pole. We’ve been so quick all weekend, and I just knew coming into that last Q3 lap, that’s going to be the one that counts. It doesn’t matter what’s happened before then. And I had a bit of a moment on my first run, and we had to change the front wing. So there was a moment I thought we weren’t going to make the flag. But just so happy and, you know, we’ve got to do some deep diving to understand why it’s been so quick so far this weekend because it was a real surprise.
Q: Yeah, all the track and then some on that first run, but you got it done on the second. You’ve got this reputation now for kind of making some calls from inside the cockpit. You said over the radio you wanted to be the last car on the racetrack. Big risk at a street circuit with the track improving, yellow flags possible, red flags possible, but how confident were you that you were going to have what it took?
GR: Yeah, I mean, ultimately, you’ve got to put it on the table sometimes, and I felt confident in myself. I knew if I did a clean lap it would be enough to secure a front row. So to get pole position, it’s incredible, but ultimately, you know, we’ve had a few good qualifyings recently. We need to convert that into a win now.
Q: OK, real just quick, back in Las Vegas, what’s it like being back here racing down the famous Strip?
GR: Yeah, it’s great always being in Las Vegas. It’s late night, good atmosphere here, and excited for the race now.
Q: Alright, congratulations. Pole position, George Russell. Alongside him, Carlos Sainz. Congratulations. Big cheer from the crowd here in Vegas. You were second in qualifying last year. You had to take that penalty, but you guys got it done today. A lot of talk about tyre temps. It is so cold here. How difficult was it to get those tires into the right operating window for that fast lap?
Carlos SAINZ: Yeah, very tricky. Well, thanks for the cheers. That was a tough, tight quali. A bit closer to pole than what I was expecting, actually. I thought I had pole and then George came very, very quick there at the end. But, yeah, very happy. I think we’re starting in a good position for tomorrow. P2 last year, but it was P12 on the grid because of the famous drain cover. This year I start P2, so hopefully we can make a better one.
Q: Look at practice, qualifying pace. One lap pace was very close. Race pace, you guys looked very, very strong. How much confidence does that give you that you can convert this into another win on the season?
CS: Yeah, that’s why we need to stay confident that tomorrow we could be fighting at the front even more than today. So if today we were close in quali, tomorrow we might have a chance at going for the win. And that will be the target. Obviously, passing and strategy will be a different thing tomorrow. I feel like today, Mercedes were very good at switching those tyres on. If you see, in Sector 1, they were flying. They were three tenths up on us. And then we were coming back as the lap was going on. But tomorrow it’s a clean sheet, new start, and see how the cars behave in high field.
Q: And finally, just from the Constructors’ Championship standpoint, big opportunity for Ferrari tomorrow. How much is your mindset going into the race, Carlos wants to win versus Ferrari needs as many points as they can to catch McLaren?
CS: I honestly think we need wins also to beat McLaren. It’s not like we can afford to just be in front of them because they have a big gap in the championship. And then we’re going to Qatar. that it’s not going to be a good track for us and we’re going to be struggling there. So, yeah, I think we need to win. So it’s not like it changes much my approach.
Q: Perfect. Congratulations. Front row start for Carlos Sainz. And Pierre Gasly will line up third on the grid tomorrow. Incredible run. This team’s really been on a great run of performance since Austin. You backed it up with an incredible podium position last time out in Brazil. Just talk to me about the emotion of getting a qualifying like this in?
Pierre GASLY: Yeah, it’s the first time ever, so no, it’s unbelievable. Honestly, we didn’t think we’d be able to achieve a top three in the quali, so it was an incredible lap, especially around this track, you know, you’re flirting with the walls everywhere through the lap, and a lot of adrenaline, a lot of excitement. I knew crossing the line it was a good lap, but when they came up on the radio telling me we’re lining up third tomorrow, it’s just amazing, so really happy.
Q: I mean, times are so tight here. So let’s just talk a little bit about how tricky it is specifically here. Cold temperatures, dirty racetrack, low downforce configurations, and walls everywhere. In qualifying for the ultimate Lap, how tricky is it here?
PG: Yeah, I mean, I was getting cold in the car. You know, we had to wait so long before that Q3. I just wanted to get going, and yeah, we had a good first run. That last lap was the one that mattered, you know, with a new tyre. And, yeah, I really managed to nail it. So the car felt great. I must say it’s an incredible period for the team following the double podium in Brazil. So hopefully we can, you know, stay up there tomorrow.
PRESS CONFERENCE
Q: Very well done, George. It was a brilliant final lap. Just how satisfying is it to put together a lap like that around such a challenging racetrack?
GR: Yeah, incredibly satisfying, and especially knowing the car’s been so quick all weekend. You know, as a team, we’ve topped every single session. And nevertheless, when you get to Q3, you know what’s happened beforehand has no influence whatsoever. So the pressure kind of is ramped up. And, you know, it was a little bit touch and go for a moment because we had to change the front wing. I wasn’t sure if I was going to get the last lap. But then it was a super strong lap, especially the first two sectors, and just really, really pleased to secure the pole.
Q: You asked to go late. You asked the team to go late. How much did the track ramp up during Q3?
GR: Massively. I think probably between the very first car and the very last car who does their lap, it’s probably over a tenth. It’s probably the biggest track ramp of the whole season. So I wanted to put it all on the line. And, you know, it’s high risk. I knew that if there were no yellow flags, then we would, you know, we had the possibility to be on the front row. But ultimately, as well, I want to say thanks to the guys in the garage to get the front wing change so quick as well, because, as I said, I touched the wall in the first run and we could have missed that last run altogether.
Q: Now, George, this is your third pole position of the season so far, but it goes against the recent run of form. So can we discuss why? Why is the Mercedes so quick this weekend?
GR: I’d love to tell you, to be honest, it’s been a real surprise for all of us. And it’s something we need to really review because this is an outlier circuit. We haven’t done anything out of the ordinary specifically for Vegas, but for whatever reason, the conditions, the layout, is playing in our favour. And I’m kind of scratching my head as to why. You know, we will ride with it for the time being. But as I said, if you’re quick in Vegas, it’s a bit of a one-off circuit. So we need to understand it. And of course, one of our other poles was in Canada as well, which is very cold, street circuit-esque conditions too, so there’s a small trend.
Q: If you were to put it down to one thing, would you say it’s temperatures?
GR: No, to be honest. No, I think there’s been no secret. We’ve been struggling with a bit of understeer this season and the track in Vegas, you’re sliding around quite a lot, and maybe that’s been a small factor that the understeer limitation has been less noticeable here. But there are certain corners where this car is performing so well, and especially in the first sector, the car feels absolutely on rails, especially through the third corner. And as I said, we need to nail down after the weekend and maybe even into the winter why it’s been working so good.
Q: Alright, final one. What about the race then? How is the long run pace of the car?
GR: Well, I think the long run for everybody has been very challenging on the Medium and the Soft. There’s a lot of graining. We saw the same last year, but I expect the Hard tyre to be very resilient. But not one single driver has run the Hard tyre as yet this whole weekend. So you’re going to be learning on the fly. It’s going to be probably surviving that first stint and going from there. But, you know, here in Vegas, anything can happen. It’s a long race. There was a timely Safety Car for a number of people last year, and we also saw that last race in Brazil. So, you know, right now I’m very happy, very satisfied, but I’m not taking anything for granted going into tomorrow.
Q: Very well done today. Good luck tomorrow. Thank you, George. Carlos, let’s come to you now. Great job as well by you. Unlike last year, you get to keep P2 on the grid. Just how good was the lap? How good was the car, first of all?
CS: Yeah, for sure. Yeah, it must have been a good lap. My previous best lap time was a 32.7. So I went down three tenths on that lap and it felt good. I was pushing the limits. At one point I thought I had pole position because I thought I was one of the last ones to cross the line. But then suddenly they told me George was coming and I knew that the Mercedes had been quick all weekend. They’ve been a bit of a step ahead of us, especially on a single lap. And I knew at that point that, yeah, George could take it. They’ve been particularly quick in Sector 1. We’re taking three or four tenths on them every single lap. And even if my lap from Sector 2 and 3 onwards is very good, it just looks like Sector 1, they’ve been a bit too strong for us. But tomorrow, everything changes. Everyone will be running on grained tyres, on high fuel, and very different conditions. situation as today, and it will be everything open again.
Q: So George has just said that he’s surprised by Mercedes pace around here. Are you about where you were expecting to be?
CS: Yeah, I think. when you see our gap to McLaren and Red Bull, we out-qualified them and we were stronger than the two teams that we’ve been fighting recently. But suddenly there’s been a new invite to the party and it’s been clearly George and Lewis all weekend topping the timesheet. So, yeah, I think going into quali, I knew they were probably going to be ahead. So, yeah, to be only a tenth off George and just next to him for the race is, I think, pretty much the maximum we could do today.
Q: Carlos, let’s throw it forward to the race then. Turn 1, first of all, was treacherous last year. A few people were turned around. Do you expect the same tomorrow?
CS: I think the race is not won or lost in Turn 1. At the same time, I feel like this year there’s more grip in Turn 1 than there was last year. So, yeah, let’s see. The thing with Vegas is we might wake up tomorrow and the track might be completely dirty again like it was in FP3 and we’re only doing laps to the grid, but we are not passing through Turn 1. No one’s going to know what amount of grip is in Turn 1. Hopefully I get a good start and obviously I can get George into Turn 1. But obviously at the same time, there’s so little grip and so many unknowns and so much possibility of overtaking around Vegas that it’s also down to a very long race. So let’s see.
Q: So much possibility. Do you think you have the pace, the raw pace to be faster than George tomorrow?
GR: I think tomorrow we should have the pace to fight for the win. At the same time, there’s too many unknowns to confirm or deny that. A lot of it will be graining, graining limitation, who can control the graining better. But even if we might see some teams struggling a lot on Medium tyres, then the Hard resets everything again because no one’s run the Hard. And we know that we are not the best team on Hard tyres this season. So yeah. Too many unknowns to tell, but I’m confident that we can fight for a win.
Q: OK, great job. Thank you very much. Now, Pierre, great to see you. I’m just thinking back to the Bahrain Grand Prix when you guys were on the back row of the grid and here you are before the end of the season in the top three. Just how satisfying is this moment for you, first of all?
PG: Yeah, it’s absolutely incredible, you know, as a team. Exactly as you mentioned, we started Bahrain on the last row with both cars, and all of a sudden, the last few weeks have been quite a change. I’m really happy and pleased with the work the team has been doing in a season where everything looked impossible, just to still stick together and put some more performance in that car. Going into qualifying today, I must admit we never thought we’ll be in a position to actually you know get in that top three, but yeah, I managed to have a very special lap at the right time on that last set in Q3 and uh yeah it’s a it’s a very nice surprise.
Q: Pierre, the car has been much improved since you introduced the upgrade in Austin, but why do you think it’s so effective here in Las Vegas?
PG: I mean, we went with a pretty aggressive package in terms of downforce, so we are running very little downforce around this track. We try to maximise the straight lines, we obviously make our lives slightly harder in the corners. But yeah, I think it’s a challenging track. It’s very cold conditions. It’s quite an outlier in the season. But I had a nice feeling in the car since P1. P2 went well. P3 went well. And then in that Q3, we managed to make it work with only one set of new tyres as well. So there was definitely some good pace. And yeah, for now, I’m very pleased. Obviously, it’s only qualifying, but I think it’s probably the first time I qualify in the top three. And it feels like it was a special one.
Q: And you’ve outqualified the top four in the World Championship. Do you think you can stay ahead of them in the race?
PG: Well, at the minute, that’s not really what I’m thinking about. I think we know where the target is for us. We’re fighting Haas and AlphaTauri (sic) in the Constructors’. Obviously, whatever happened in that quali is amazing. It feels good to be in front of Max and McLaren and these guys. But at the end of the day, it’s not our fight. So we’ll give our best shot tomorrow. Exactly as Carlos said, it’s a challenging one around here with the graining. So we’ll make sure we do our homework tonight to maximize the chances tomorrow. But for sure, from P3, we increase our chances to get some good points.
QUESTIONS FROM THE FLOOR
Q: (Luke Smith – The Athletic) George, it’s been a trend this season that Mercedes tends to be really, really quick on a Friday, but then struggles to gain more pace going through Saturday and Sunday. Did that leave you maybe a little bit sceptical after how strong yesterday was, whether you’d be able to carry that through into today? And what was the confirmation, knowing that, ‘hey, actually, we are this quick’?
GR: Yeah, I’d say the trend that we’ve seen this season of being quicker, or let’s say at the upper end of a timesheet, has probably been down more to the fact that our rivals use a bit more fuel, probably not using their high power. Whenever our strategists have done the review, we normally end up qualifying where they predicted we’d be after practice. It’s just when you see the timesheets, it’s maybe a little bit more flattering. But this weekend, it was slightly different again because the track was so different in FP1 and FP2. The lap times were probably four or five seconds quicker come qualifying. And it’s a very challenging decision on a Thursday night when the car is working well. You don’t want to touch it, but you know it’s going to be totally different tomorrow. And you need to make some changes to follow the track improvement. So yeah, as I said, still was still scratching our heads a little bit as to why, but it’s been a great weekend so far.
Q: (Jesus Balseiro – Diario AS) For Carlos. The cars you have surrounding you tomorrow haven’t been fighting for wins recently – Mercedes and Alpine. So which cars or drivers do you think you’ll be fighting for the win tomorrow? I mean, maybe McLaren and Max who are behind.
CS: No, I think we are genuinely fighting for the win with Mercedes tomorrow. They went through a run of winning, I think, three consecutive races in mid-season and whenever they get it together, they are very, very fast and the fastest, like they’ve shown today. So I think we’re definitely going to fight George. I think Pierre, if he keeps these lap times, why not? And of course, Charles behind in P4 and who is P5? Max. Maybe with his higher downforce car can take a better care of the tyres and the graining and then suddenly he can get in the mix also. So I think we’re fighting many cars and I think that is the beauty of Formula 1 nowadays, it’s that we went into this qualifying with four teams being capable of taking pole position, four teams capable of winning tomorrow if you put everything together and that’s a great thing for everyone, I think.
Q: (Ben Hunt – Autosport) Gentlemen, I just wondered, your opinion… You got to meet the Race Director for the first time last night. I just wondered what your first impressions were on him and what he had to say to you.
GR: I’d say positive, to be honest. I think we’ve been through a little bit of an era where our comments are taken on board, but very little change happens. For example, a number of drivers spoke about the track limits of the exit of Turn 4. We felt it was a little bit unnecessary on a street circuit. He made a change to it in the moment, and I think that’s what we want to see as drivers we want to be we heard we want to be heard and we want to see action taken straight away. So I mean, so far it’s been positive.
CS: Yeah he’s been given a massive task to come into a season with three race left and Race Director, I think it’s such a complicated role in Formula 1, which you have so many variables to control that I think he’s been given a very difficult task, but honestly, the first weekend straight from the go, I think he’s been really good. I think the Driver’s Briefing yesterday was one of the best we’ve had in a long time. George commented on the Turn 3 exit. I will say we also asked for some changes on the pit entry to make the line more visible because we literally couldn’t see the pit entry line, so we were very worried about that and today we turn up to the track and the pit entry line was widened, was put a blue line and we were all saying this was really nice because they did a very nice change and with a very good approach. and the way we were listening yesterday was honestly also a very positive meeting and I’m encouraged by that.
PG: Yeah, I think they summed it up. It’s been a great start and great to see good communication. So far, very positive.
Q: (Luke Smith – The Athletic) Carlos, with both you and Charles starting ahead of the McLarens tomorrow, how big an opportunity is it? I know you said that Qatar might be a bit of a more difficult weekend for you. So is it crucial to really maximise tomorrow?
CS: Yeah, I’m a bit worried about Qatar because if you see Turn 1 and Turn 3, it’s exactly the type of corner you have in Qatar. Fourth, fifth gear, long combined, which is exactly where we’ve been struggling. And just in that sector today to the Merc, we were three tenths off. So if you keep adding those corners up, it could be a tough one for us in Qatar. So tomorrow is a good opportunity to get points because we might lose them in Qatar. So, yeah, I think we’re going to go into the race trying to win because that’s what we need to target. Also knowing McLaren is behind and with the two cars trying to get the maximum points possible because we know in order to beat McLaren, we’re probably going to go through a weekend in Qatar where we’re also losing points. So we need to make sure we gain them and knowing that, yeah, there are 30 something points ahead. That is quite a lot.
Q: (Kevin Scheuren – Motorsport-Total.com) A question to Carlos, following up on that. Are you and Charles both on the same page when it comes to battling each other in order to maximise the points? Is it all set?
CS: I think we are both the first one interested in winning the Constructors’. I’m not going to lie. I think we’re both very motivated to do so, and we are collaborating with each other more than ever before, also because I’m very far off him in the championship with the two or three zeros that I had this season. And even though I’m driving well, I think there is not personal battles for the Driver’s Championship going on. And this means that we have a common interest of clinching the Constructors’ because we both have that left for us in the in the championship, and we are collaborating more than ever before, as I said, and cooperating as much as we can. And yeah, we will go into tomorrow knowing that that is the number one priority.
Q: (Ben Waterworth – The Roar) Question to all three. We’re meant to have the warmest day of the weekend tomorrow. Are you expecting that to affect the performance of the car in the race tomorrow at all?
GR: I think it will only help the tyre graining, which we’re only expecting to see on probably the Medium tyre, but from probably lap 15, 20 onwards, it’s not going to make a big impact.
CS: Yeah, I’ve seen also it’s going to be a lot windier. So, you know how much these cars get affected by the wind. So you have warmer but also windier. I heard also that big winds are going to be a headwind down the back straight. So that could make DRS and slipstreaming more important tomorrow. So yeah, throwing even more variables into the equation with the wind, with the dust maybe coming to the track. So I think it could be a different day or interesting day.
PG: Yeah, same. I think it’s going to make it… We know it’s challenging. We’ve seen last year and I think tomorrow conditions are going to be even, let’s say, more challenging. So, yeah, it brings opportunities and that’s the way I see it.
Q: (Sahil Kapoor – NBC) I want to ask all three of you, three different cars on the podium this time. Looking ahead to the next year, do you think any team enters as a favourite, or do you think it’ll be unpredictable? Is that unpredictability good for F1?
PG: I think it’s great to see Alpine in the top three. That’s what I can tell. But I mean, if you’re looking at the championship, I think it’s been tighter than ever this year. Obviously, we’d love to be in the battle more often, but as a motorsport fan as well, I must say it’s enjoyable when you have this unpredictability in terms of results. You get three, four teams fighting for race wins. Hopefully, we can keep that going into next year, which I think we won’t see massive surprises in terms of performance, but hopefully the grid can get even closer and we can get a bit more different faces for you guys to see for the top three after Quali and the races more often.
CS: Yeah, I hope Williams comes as a favourite. But no, I think Ferrari, McLaren, favourites for next year. Max, you always need to count him as a favourite. And then if Merc discover why they won three races in a row and why they’re on pole here, they’re going to be favorites also. I think it just shows that it could go anywhere. When you have four teams within two tenths and they have a whole winter to work on the car and improve the car, those two tenths could quickly switch around and create a different favourite. So all four teams for me could be in the fight.
Q: (Lorenza Binkele – The Economics) Just a question for all three. Just curious about what is your routine like, you know, diet etcetera, night race versus a day race. Do you change anything in your routine?
CS: I will go to sleep at 4 a.m., wake up at 12. I think today I woke up at 12. So as late as possible, basically, because if not, the day becomes so long that you arrive to the night very tired. And yeah, I’ve been changing my sleeping routine one hour more or less every day that I spend here. I managed to go to sleep an hour later, wake up an hour later. And tomorrow I’ll try and wake up at 1. Apart from that, you do breakfast, lunch, and dinner according to that timetable. So my breakfast is at 2 p.m., lunch is at 7, dinner is in an hour or two. So, yeah, it’s weird, but for me, it’s just how the day works here. And I want to keep everything as a normal weekend, getting the same amount of hours of sleep, and then keeping myself the same time until the important session of the week.
GR: Yeah, similar to Carlos, it’s a real challenge for the body. Such a big shift from Europe. And of course, we have to shift back when we go to Qatar next week. So it’s difficult to get your eight hours sleep in when it’s so offset. So for me, it’s also just trying to sleep when you can, so I took. you know, a nap before qualifying. Woke up a little bit drowsy and then made sure I was in peak condition come the end of qualifying. But it’s really difficult, but we’re all in the same boat.
PG: Don’t put your alarm tomorrow before the race!
Q: Did you actually manage to sleep before qualifying? You actually slept?
GR: Yeah, I went to sleep because the body’s just all over the place. And I’m just trying to sleep when I can and just listen to my body. And if I need to sleep, sleep. And there wasn’t much to do. The car was feeling good. I was feeling good. So we didn’t change the setup at all going into qualifying. So it was sleep was the best thing.
PG: Yeah, exactly. Similar comments, maybe shifted a bit later for me compared to Carlos, but I find what’s most challenging here is the amount of sunlight you get throughout the whole week is just so little that it just makes it kind of strange reason because you’re in the night for a full week pretty much. Yeah, it’s a bit strange, but, yeah, we get used to it. We know it’s tough. It’s one of these things where it’s almost better not really to think about it because there’s nothing we can do. So, you know, it’s business. Just get it done. And then next week’s going to be tough. We’re all going to, you know, struggle, but it’s going to be the same for everyone. So, yeah, just get through it.
Q: (Ben Hunt – Autosport) Sorry, George, to dig into the sleep stuff. How long did you get? Were you in your driver’s room or did you go back to the hotel? And is it normal that you’ve done that before?
GR: I mean, to be honest, I’d normally try and probably sort of meditate as opposed to sleep, just sort of close my eyes and listen to, I don’t know, waves crashing against the sea or breathing exercises. I sort of do like box breathing and works for me. It sort of relaxes my mind and takes a bit of pressure off. But yeah, today got probably 45 minutes. So yeah, as I said, it’s just adapting every single weekend. When people ask me, like, what’s your race weekend routine, the routine changes every single weekend, depending on how you slept the night before, the circumstances you find yourself in. And obviously here, it’s so challenging for everyone being so offset, working night shift effectively. You know, for me, just sleeping when I can is working for me.