Jenson Button to start from third in Austria

This qualifying session was full of contrasts for McLaren: a big smile for Jenson Button, a huge frustration for Fernando Alonso. The Brit managed to navigate the traps at the end of Q2 perfectly, even though he made a mistake when the rain came: « I thought everything was over in Q2 when I locked up my tires in the third corner. There was just a little rain in the first two corners. So I didn’t think it would bother me in the third corner, but I went wide. »

This allowed him to slip into his first Q3 since Abu Dhabi 2014. He then didn’t let up his effort as he recorded the fifth fastest time in this last session: “I always enjoy these conditions. I was just trying to keep everything for the last lap. Fortunately, there were no yellow flags. I took a lot of risks and everything worked out.”

Nevertheless, he knows that the race promises to be complicated, especially concerning tire management: « It’s going to be difficult tomorrow: nobody really understands how the tires work, but starting from third place means we are in a good position. For now, I will just enjoy this moment… »

Conversely, Fernando Alonso’s session ended earlier than expected. Indeed, the team’s mechanics made a mistake with the tires and fitted him with a set of worn tires instead of new ones for his first Q2 lap: “It clearly wasn’t a session that went well for us. In Q2, with the threat of rain, we tried to leave the garage as early as possible. Unfortunately, for whatever reason, super soft Q1 tires were put on my car instead of new tires.”

The Spaniard was then forced to return to the pits to change tires, but the weather had already changed: « When we put on new tires for the second stint, I had to face a yellow flag and we had to abandon the lap. It’s disappointing because we really need to capitalize on our mistakes from the previous days. »

He will have to rely on tough track conditions to try to overcome this initial handicap.

From our special correspondent in Spielberg