F1 Qualifying Press Conference - Austrian GP — Lewis Hamilton, George Russell, Charles Leclerc

[0:00] warm welcome to our top three qualifiers for the fia formula one austrian grand prix [0:06] in third place lewis hamilton in second place charles claire and taking the 11th pole position [0:11] of his formula one career our pole sitter george russell a brilliant final lap there george of q3 [0:19] let's start with where did you find the time it was so much better than anything else we saw from [0:23] you in the session if i had the answer we'd be on pole every week to be honest it's i said on [0:30] thursday it's like when the car clicks and the tires work and it just gets into that sweet spot [0:38] a huge amount of lap time comes from nowhere and i had a really difficult session i was almost out [0:43] out in q2 my first lap in q3 was strong and then i just went around turn one on my final lap i was [0:51] a tenth and a half up and then turn three another tenth and a half up and turn four another tenth [0:55] and a half and the lap was unbelievable and then obviously i got that yellow flag in the single [1:00] yellow in the last sector uh but i did a hundred meter lift lost a huge amount of time and still [1:06] you know i i don't know i don't i don't have the answer for sure i'll be looking with my team where [1:12] it came from but it felt very very sweet what what did you change on the car between run one and run [1:17] two of q3 no it was just a little bit of um how i brought the tires in um change a little bit of front [1:24] wing as well but it is one of those when you when you nail turn one and you go through fast but the [1:30] car doesn't slide it keeps the temperatures a little bit down so your the tires are cooler approaching [1:35] the next uh turn and then you have more grip so you go through there faster and the tires are cooler [1:40] once again and it's this sort of upward spiral and and equally if you have a bad turn one you're on this [1:46] downward spiral and it and it just clicked it's just one of those magic laps and just so so pleased [1:53] because it's been a real tough run for me um but you know like toso said to me in q2 um just like [2:01] enjoy it just enjoy the drive and said the same ahead of q3 just go out and and enjoy it and i said [2:06] that to myself just don't overdrive it just just enjoy it because it's it's quite a cool thing that we do [2:12] you just touched on it then do you think you have been over driving there's definitely a factor of [2:17] that but it's so difficult because if you're on the back foot and you're off the pace by a tenth or two [2:23] or three to then say i'm going to try less hard it's it doesn't compute you know when when things [2:32] aren't going your way you always want to do more and more and more and when you're in the car to say [2:37] that i'm going to approach this corner and i'm going to break five meters earlier than the lap before [2:42] it that's just not how our brains work but sometimes that is the faster way and when you [2:49] saw the yellow flag on that final run were you tempted to abort i mean you say you say you you [2:54] lifted off but could you just talk us through the thought process yeah well it was there's a corner [2:59] where you can see quite a lot and i just did a huge lift and i was going to assess the situation [3:05] as soon as i got to the corner if you know the car was there but um as it was a single yellow i was [3:12] pretty confident there was there was no danger and as soon as i i turned into the corner i already [3:17] saw the green up ahead and i actually thought the car had continued uh because i i didn't see the car [3:23] at all it was so far off the track i didn't see the car whatsoever um it was only when i saw the [3:28] replay afterwards i saw it was you know well off into the wall um so yeah i was you know glad common [3:36] sense prevailed there because yeah all right throw it forward to tomorrow you've nailed the [3:42] poll today high track temperatures like last time out in barcelona you've got the red cars all around [3:47] you at the start just uh give us your thoughts on on what the main challenges are going to be in this [3:53] grand prix well these guys are super fast and it's going to be a challenge having the two of them [3:59] nearby you know we saw luis in barcelona how great his his pace was i think it will be challenging for [4:06] them to overtake us in the straights because uh we've got the straight line advantage but they've [4:12] got the advantage in the corners and you know if they're split splitting the strategy or putting us [4:19] under pressure it may be difficult to hold on to and of course you know kimmy's going to be super fast [4:25] the parents have looked really fast max i don't know how his last lap was looking but you know he [4:30] was right up there as well with those new upgrades for red bull so there's a huge fight on our hands [4:34] from all angles all right george very well done to you thank you for that charles let's come to you now [4:39] george just mentioned upgrades uh there's more on the ferrari this weekend just tell us about the [4:44] performance of the car in that qualifying session for you yeah the car is feeling good and i think the [4:49] team is pushing like crazy at the moment which is really nice to see in barcelona we um we had a big [4:54] package but uh everybody's pushing like crazy to try and product those uh upgrades as quickly as [5:00] possible and bring them to the track also as quickly as possible and it's it's definitely paying off so [5:06] uh that's uh that's really good to see my qualifying was um yeah quite tricky honestly the car uh on [5:14] braking i was really really struggling uh quite a lot from q1 to uh to the last lap in q3 um i managed to [5:21] do a bit of a better lap in q3 which i'm happy off i thought uh at one point that uh that i'll have [5:27] paul but um yeah george was just uh was just too quick but uh but the first line is is good especially [5:33] after the the last couple of races where the feeling wasn't there in uh in canada and monaco in [5:40] barcelona unfortunately there was the the technical issue that cost us a few more points and uh and yeah to [5:47] be back with a bit more of a normal weekend uh feels good i i needed that what was the key to your pace [5:54] in q3 did you change anything in the way you drove change anything in the car honestly it wasn't a very [6:02] special lap uh it's uh the kind of laps where yeah as i said i i just wanted a clean qualifying i just [6:11] wanted a clean lap and so uh when you are in this mindset maybe you leave a little bit of margin on the [6:16] table but uh i don't regret it because i wouldn't have beaten george anyway so um so yeah uh second [6:24] is the best we could do today okay what about tomorrow uh second today first tomorrow how do you [6:29] see it uh i really hope so uh but uh it's very strange because yesterday was a very tough day for [6:36] the team i think we were struggling a lot as a team and and today we did a big step forward i i did not [6:41] expect and i think as a team we did not expect to be uh to be in front of the mclarens um uh [6:46] particularly and and and close to the mercedes so that's that's a good surprise then for the race in [6:51] itself i think we did a step forward with the with the car for for tomorrow whether this will be enough [6:56] to challenge the mercedes i doubt so but uh if there's an opportunity um i will do everything to [7:02] take it all right very well done to you thank you charles let's come to you now if you'd had two runs [7:08] in queue three what do you think was poll possible i don't know whether we could do the same time [7:17] as those guys they've been quick all weekend so congrats to to george um but uh otherwise you know [7:23] it's amazing to to be up here with with charles i think it's such a great showing for for ferrari [7:29] and just really oh it really is a reflection of just the hard work that everyone's been putting in [7:34] back of the factory you know we got the new upgrade this weekend on the engine which is [7:38] this which is a slight step forwards and then we also brought a couple little pieces on the car so [7:43] it's just every weekend it's really great to see them pushing so much and just continuing to bring [7:47] these pieces that you could tell they're hungry and they're pushing which i'm really proud of so [7:52] and that's why we're we're up here and as close as we are yesterday we're like six tenths off in a [7:58] straight line and somehow today we we're closer so um yeah unfortunately the the weekend had been pretty [8:05] good my i mean this morning in p3 my i felt good with the laps and then um got to qualifying and [8:12] struggled a little bit more with with the balance particularly on the brakes and then q3 um made a [8:17] mistake in turn one then turn three and lost that lap that really puts you on the back foot naturally [8:23] because you've got to squeeze out a lap um so given that i missed that first lap i'm pretty happy with [8:29] that okay let's throw it forward to tomorrow um after everything you did in barcelona last time out [8:35] in very hot track conditions how confident are you that you can take the win again i think this weekend [8:42] we've not been confident that we could fight for a win these guys have been six tenths quicker than us [8:47] most of the weekend we closed the gap overnight three tenths and um but we still are three tenths down [8:53] today or two and a bit tenths down today so it's going to be very tough to challenge them tomorrow but [8:59] with the long run down to turn three um hopefully together we can now it's great having charlotte [9:05] up here as well because we can hopefully work together with strategy and try to apply pressure [9:11] to them all right good luck with that thank you lewis let's open this to the floor name and publication [9:17] please hello james phillips motorsport monday question for lewis uh austria is a very different [9:25] circuit to barcelona are you confident of continuing to take the fight to mercedes in a sustained way for [9:29] the rest of the year and can i just ask what the measure of success is for the new upgrade on the [9:33] engine thank you uh i don't think we have a measure of success i mean we just want to continue to be [9:40] moving forwards and trying to get closer we we knew coming into this weekend would be tough uh with the [9:47] long straights we got here and the deficit looked bigger than than than other circuits that we've been at [9:54] maybe it's altitude i'm not sure i can't really predict what's going to happen in the future just i know [10:00] when we get to the long straight circuits we uh it's going to be our achilles heel for a while [10:06] um but as i said the really proud of the team for continuing to work we got this upgrade that's the [10:11] first step but it's we've got um we need to make a bigger step naturally to really close the gap with [10:16] them thank you next charl you went from saying on friday that the card was sliding everywhere to put the [10:29] car in front to at the end of q3 how many changes have you made uh overnight and how is the feeling [10:36] in the car after you you changed the brake configuration after monaco um we changed quite a [10:43] lot actually um not big steps but a little bit everywhere so at the end it ended up being quite a [10:51] big difference um then yeah i think after monaco there's been many things that have changed and the [10:57] the feeling was uh was better in in barcelona um it's still not yet where i want to be um [11:05] and as i said knowing in qualifying i didn't feel as confident as i've been in the past where [11:11] i just go all in and i know exactly what the car is going to do this is not the feeling that i have [11:16] at the moment and this is where i want to focus on um but yeah every time i struggled in the past and [11:23] that i put effort in it normally things go better so that's already a first step but uh but uh but [11:30] that's not where i want to stop and then for um yeah no that was your question so yeah that's it [11:36] thank you next little from the energy people uh george how important is it for you to uh to beat [11:46] kimmy now uh after such a long period mentally uh for your confidence how important is it for you uh [11:54] for your confidence and mentally to to beat kimmy now i mean it's the eighth race of the season uh [12:04] it's my fourth pole but i've never been able to really convert into a good result so it has you [12:12] know moments like this it's like confidence is restored and like charles was just saying it last [12:20] year every lap every session i just had the confidence in the car to just push it to the limit and know [12:24] exactly what it was going to do and i think for charles you know one of the best definitely [12:30] qualifiers on the grid was the same and for both of us it has been challenging a lot at at times but [12:36] we haven't just forgotten how to drive and there is definitely an element of understanding what this [12:46] car needs what these tires need in different conditions and you know kimmy's just done an amazing [12:53] job day in day out do i have the confidence i can beat him yeah a hundred percent i just need to get [12:58] that click as i as i found again today as i had in barcelona as i had in canada as i had in melbourne [13:04] as i showed in china and then you know the results will come at some point in the races it can't [13:10] continuously be bad luck over the course of a season so yeah feeling good thank you next laurence [13:19] and a question to george you mentioned the message from toto we had the one over the team radio i don't [13:24] know if he said anything else but how helpful are those messages kind of midway through a session [13:28] to help you refocus because sometimes they sound a little bit more like an order than support but [13:33] um how helpful are they it's probably the austrian accent to be honest um no i think knowing that [13:42] your boss has 100 faith and confidence in you you know he's been the one who has been the first to pick [13:49] me up throughout the season when things haven't been going right and reminding me like you haven't [13:56] forgotten how to drive and i know the speed you've got and um so and we we speak every single day and [14:07] those little messages they kind of throw me to conversations that we have you know on a personal [14:14] level between races as such so you know maybe for you sort of listening not knowing the context [14:20] for me it means a lot and you know reminds me of of those chats we've had and reminds me that yeah [14:27] i can do it you know i've done it my whole career um there's no reason why i can't do it again today [14:33] thank you george next uh rodrigo franca car magazine brazil question to all in pre-season test a lot of [14:42] drivers were complaining about the new rules and after so many upgrades in the cars and changes does the f1 [14:48] car feels better to drive and do you see f1 in a good moment as a sport now i think the evolution [14:59] but the regulation changing from japan onwards has been very good the cars do feel much nicer to drive [15:09] i think the one issue that all of the drivers are complaining about other tire pressures [15:14] um but from what we hear and understand pirelli are trying to make improvements there you know [15:20] there's a strange rule um that they have to take into consideration if a team's sm fails and then [15:29] there's much more downforce on the car and then they need to take compensation by two or three psi for [15:34] this but you know for all of us it feels like you have big balloons um you're driving on and [15:41] if they could make that step i think it would be much better for the drivers much better for [15:45] racing less overheating we could fight even closer i think that would be the next big step yeah i mean [15:54] i i don't know if you ask me what do i prefer between this year's cars or last year's cars i think [15:59] last year's cars were we could still push to these cars to the absolute limit uh on some tracks it's it's [16:07] true what george says that it's um it's getting better but uh but still you've got this energy [16:14] management in mind on a track like this by example uh it was less the case in barcelona or in monaco [16:20] but there are still those tracks where you've got to to keep that in mind and that is um yeah a little [16:26] bit less pleasure inside the car but uh um but it's it's like this for now and i'm sure things will will [16:33] improve okay thanks all next valherji the race a question to george uh george you said common sense [16:43] prevailed and you know apologies this is a bit annoying because you did a clean lap you did a [16:47] legal lap you did a pole lap but in hindsight and also as gpda director having seen the scope of the [16:53] accident that in hindsight having seen the scope of the accident having seen that you passed through [16:58] it with single yellows are you surprised it was single yellows especially as you weren't the car [17:02] behind verstappen immediately and is that something to raise as i said i didn't even see the car because [17:11] the runoff is so so far and i think in that instance a single yellow was was correct um because [17:20] as i said you know a double yellow is immediate danger um you're never going you know lifting 100 [17:27] meters before a corner or lifting off with a single yellow you're never going to lose control of the car [17:33] you know verstappen the only reason he was in the wall that far away is because he [17:37] was attacking and lost the car so you know i think the single yellow was correct i think i did everything [17:42] right um to you know be very much under control and and it's very different story to a double [17:52] thank you anymore no more we will leave it there very well dungeon