Buemi blames traffic for missing Q2

The Swiss driver will start from 17th position after another difficult day for his Toro Rosso team.

Buemi admitted he is now hoping for a wet race tomorrow in order to have a chance of a good result.

"I think I could have got into Q2 if I had not got caught in traffic," said Buemi. "Other than that, I feel we did the best we could, given we are still waiting for our car updates. We improved the car this morning and it seemed competitive in comparison with the cars we are racing against.

"So I must admit, I am hoping for rain tomorrow as our car should go well in wet conditions. We will just have to keep pushing and see what happens."

Team-mate Sebastien Bourdais endured an ever worse day as he continued to struggle with the handling of his car.

The Frenchman, who is believed to be in his final race with the team, finished at the bottom of the times.

"We knew we weren't quick enough this morning, when I was unhappy with the balance of the car, so this afternoon we tried something very different in terms of set-up, using those that Sebastien was happy with this morning," he said.

"But it didn't work out. It's a shame the rain did not come sooner, as I think we would have been more competitive in those conditions.

"To be honest, it doesn't make much difference if you're seventeenth or twentieth and tomorrow, I will try my best and see what we can do."