While pleased to have topped the times in practice, Sebastian Vettel admits doing so again in qualifying will be crucial to his victory chances at the Hungarian GP.
The Ferrari driver is not hanging around this weekend as the usually subdued performance of the Scuderia on a Friday was replaced by the four-time world champion finishing second and first in the two sessions.
Much of that is because of his determination to put the events of last Sunday at Hockenheim behind him, after crashing out from the lead in damp conditions, and Vettel acknowledged that winning in Budapest would be a big boost mentally.
“It is probably good to have a race straight away to get your head away and focus on the next thing to do,” the 31-year-old said.
“I hope we can cancel it out and make this race count and then forget properly.”
Reflecting on the performance of his car in practice, Vettel was satisfied with what he felt behind the wheel of the SF71-H.
“I was pretty happy in the afternoon, happier than in the morning and I think the car is pretty good for one lap,” he stated.
“We can still improve but it has been one of the better Fridays. Obviously they have been a bit up and down for us lately, so today was quite solid.”
And it is the single lap pace which the four-time world champion considers most important, as he hopes the pace of the Ferrari in the first sector is enough to counteract Red Bull’s strength in the second and third.
“I think that qualifying and the start are very important here because overtaking is very difficult,” he continued.
“Whoever is ahead after the first couple of corners, that will be crucial, but to get there, there is a lot of things to do, a lot of work ahead.”
Friday also marked the first time Vettel has spoken to the media since the sudden death of Ferrari chairman Sergio Marchionne earlier this week, with the Italian team excused from speaking to reporters on Thursday.
Commenting on the atmosphere within the team, who are all wearing black armbands and have flags at half-mast as a sign of respect, Seb believes everyone is trying to stick to business as usual.
“I think it is probably best to get in the car then everybody knows what to do,” Vettel said.
“Obviously not easy, but I think today the work has been okay and I think that having a lot of work in front of you is probably best to get your head away and focus on the job you have to do here.”