By failing to advance out of Q1 on Saturday, Valtteri Bottas of Williams and Esteban Gutierrez of Sauber will have their work cut out for them for Sunday’s Chinese Grand Prix in Shanghai.
Bottas, who qualified 17th, continued a grim record so far this season for Williams, which has lost a driver in each opening qualifying round in 2013. As for Gutierrez, he’ll start 18th after failing to move into Q2 for the second time this season.
This video is no longer available. Click here to watch more NBC Sports videos!“We left the run quite late in Q1 as everyone else also left it late before heading back out and we were waiting for the track conditions to improve,” said Bottas. “However, with only one lap to get everything right, it was quite a difficult situation. The wind conditions made it tricky to get the perfect lap as I was trying to push hard and it’s a new experience for me to have to put everything together in just one lap.”
This video is no longer available. Click here to watch more NBC Sports videos!Gutierrez called his qualifying result “disappointing,” especially considering that he felt he had the speed to break into Q2. His veteran teammate, Nico Hulkenberg, wound up charging all the way into Q3 before opting to take no time in the final round in order to save tires.
“It was very challenging to put a first quick lap together with only one chance,” Gutierrez said. “It is very critical and I was trying to push a little too hard and ended up making a small mistake, which cost us a lot. I will improve on that side and make sure everything I am doing in the car is very precise…The speed, which shows the potential of the car, is motivating, but we still need to put everything together, and that includes from my side.”
