Nico Hulkenberg experienced a moment of disbelief when he learned that his impressive pace during qualifying for the Sprint at the United States Grand Prix might be too extraordinary to be true. Securing an outstanding fourth position on the starting grid, he expressed a mix of joy and cautious optimism about his performance.
"I’m feeling quite satisfied and happy, as you can imagine," Hulkenberg remarked. "In the first practice session, everything appeared to be going well. However, it almost seemed unreal, leaving us unsure about whether we were genuinely competitive or if others were simply running different programs. Thankfully, we were able to maintain that positive trend throughout the session."
Hulkenberg went on to explain that while personal feelings about a car’s performance can sometimes be deceiving and don’t always align with the actual lap times, the numbers don’t lie. He continued, "The timing for our laps was encouraging all day, and I’m really pleased with our progress. I hope we can carry this momentum forward through the weekend."
Boasting that Sauber has “found the right balance” with their setup, Hulkenberg acknowledged the challenge he'll face to keep up with the established frontrunners in the Sprint race. He cautiously added, "While this isn’t a full race, the Sprint still involves a collection of very fast cars, known for their superior tire degradation. However, we’re determined to battle and see how much we can hold onto in the race. Hopefully, we’ll find some rewarding results."
On the other hand, the atmosphere in the Sauber garage was somewhat tempered due to the difficulties faced by teammate Gabriel Bortoleto. After having his initial lap during SQ1 disqualified due to a track limits infraction, he was unable to complete a second lap in time, leaving him to start at the back of the grid.
"My first lap was marked for track limits, but to be honest, it wasn’t a strong lap anyway," explained the Brazilian driver. "For my second attempt, we just left the garage too late and didn’t make it to the line before the chequered flag. There’s really not much to report. I managed only one lap, and it turned out to be invalid due to track limits.
The car itself felt decent, which is a pity because I believe we had more potential. But we’ll focus on what’s ahead; tomorrow is the main qualifying event.”
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