Red Bull thinks P2 is a “better place to start” for Sergio Perez at the Belgian Grand Prix.
The Mexican had a disappointing qualifying, finishing eight-tenths behind teammate Max Verstappen and unable to beat Carlos Sainz to what would have been his second career pole position.
But as Perez explained, his session at Spa Francorchamps was far from smooth.
“It was a good but not fantastic qualifying,” he said. “My first lap in Q3 wasn’t great. Then that session was slightly disturbed due to other issues, like a little damage to my floor.
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“But being P2 for the race tomorrow is still decent. We improved very well from yesterday considering we lost a lot of track time in FP2 and I think there is still room to improve in the race.
“Being on pole doesn’t benefit you too much here as being close to Carlos in Eau Rouge can get me the lead, so I will try to do that. It’s important we race our own race.
“We can fight for the win from the front row tomorrow – we expect to go for it,” he added. “It’s about getting a good start, a clean lap one and going from there.”
Your front row for tomorrow’s #BelgianGP ??? pic.twitter.com/DjQkjeVfet
— Oracle Red Bull Racing (@redbullracing) August 27, 2022
Red Bull boss Christian Horner also thinks Perez might actually be in the perfect place for the start.
“Checo also had a brilliant qualifying. He is perfectly poised to take on Carlos at the front,” he said.
“We discussed ahead of time and agreed that tactically P2 may be a better place to start. Yes, P1 is traditionally the best place to start; but here it’s all to play for.
“There is going to be a lot to keep on top of tomorrow!”