P6 for Max in first Macau qualifying
Published on 13 November 2014 by Stefan Meens
On the first day of the Formula 3 Macau Grand Prix weekend, Max Verstappen finished the first of two qualifying sessions in sixth place. Euro F3 colleagueTom Blomqvist took pole position. The Briton finished ahead of his Jahonya Ayam with Carlin team mate Antonio Giovinazzi.
Max: “The first qualifying started well for me and I was among the front runners in the early stages. After that, we started to lose out. I don’t think the drop in performance had to do with the tyres, so we’ll investigate and try to improve.”
Qualifying was preceded by a 40-minute free practice session. The Red Bull Junior reached P7 with a 2:15.4. Blomqvist and Giovinazzi were among the front-runners but were ultimately beaten by Euro F3 regular Lucas Auer.
“I used the first practice session to really get to know the track. It’s not an easy track and you don’t want to crash the car so I didn’t take too many risks. In the end I got to grips with the course fairly quickly”, explains Verstappen junior, who’s cautious approach paid dividends as the session was red flagged several times. Among the drivers stranded in the barriers were Esteban Ocon, Sean MacLeod, Spike Goddard and Dan Wells.
The Van Amersfoort driver continues: “I was fairly pleased with the car’s set-up after FP1 but it’s always difficult to make a proper assessment this early on in the weekend. It’s just not a track on which you can go fast straight away. The walls are right next to the track so every mistake means you’ll end in the barriers. Nevertheless, it’s a challenging and fun circuit to drive with all its straights, fast corners and tight hairpins. It’s a lovely lay-out."
When qualifying gets underway, the Dutchman holds P1 in the opening fifteen minutes. After that, he struggles to improve his lap times as significant as his closest rivals. In an attempt to turn fortunes around, Max heads to the pits for a couple of new tyres. The move does not pay off. “We tried if we could improve but there was too much traffic.”
In the end, Max has to settle for P6 with a fastest lap of a 1:12.811, trailing pole sitter Blomqvist by eighth tenths. The 17-year-old youngster knows there is room for improvement. “There is definitely more speed to come. Theoretically my fastest lap is a second quicker than my set time. In general, I think we’re close to the front of the grid. We’ll have to wait and see but I’ll give it my all.”
The full schedule for the Macau Grand Prix can be found here.
Furthermore, you can follow Max via the live timing and the (unofficial) livestream.
Formula 3 Macau Grand Prix – Macau – Day 1, Thursday 13 November:
Results free practice 1
Results qualifying 1
