Haas F1 driver Romain Grosjean thought he might beat a Red Bull
Haas Formula 1 driver Romain Grosjean initially thought he might be able to split the two Red Bulls in qualifying for the Austrian Grand Prix


Grosjean was seventh quickest in qualifying and will start Sunday's race sixth, best of those behind Mercedes, Ferrari and Red Bull, as Haas continues to excel at the Red Bull Ring.
The Frenchman ended up half a second slower than Max Verstappen in the nearest Red Bull, but felt he would have been closer if he had not stopped on track with an electronics problem.
"At one point I thought maybe we could try to get a Red Bull but it was a bit too optimistic, so very happy with what we have," said Grosjean.
"In Q3 I only did my lap on scrubbed tyres, because we had only one [fresh] set of tyres and when we went out with the issue I stopped the car.
"Red Bull, 1m04.8s or 1m04.9s...I'm not sure I could've been there.
"But I'm very proud of my last sector, which is already more than the car can do - two hundredths from the best here.
"I'll try to keep P6 as much as I can, or get a good start, then I won't lose time just battling for 71 laps trying to close the door."
Grosjean admitted he was surprised by Haas's upturn in form in Austria, having struggled for pace in the previous races in Azerbaijan and Canada.
"I was coming here not expecting much," he said.
"We've been working hard and sorting out problems back home.
"We got here and the car actually worked better, I guess, with more of a conventional set-up than we were [using] recently.
"I think the fact that we were not fast in the straight line in the last two races, we had to take so much downforce out that the car became very, very tricky to drive, and of course problems are more obvious when you've got low grip."

Team-mate Kevin Magnussen will only start 15th after an upper wishbone broke on his rear suspension at the end of Q1, preventing him from taking part in the rest of qualifying.
Haas will evaluate the gearbox to see if it was damaged as a result of the failure, and may have to change it and take a grid penalty.
Magnussen had no doubts he would have been able to challenge Grosjean for a row-three start, which the Frenchman gains by Lewis Hamilton's five-place grid penalty.
"I've been in front of him all weekend," said Magnussen. "It's very annoying and frustrating.
"Although we were competitive the field is very close, we won't be a second faster than the guys around.
"You need that to be able to overtake.
"It's going to be difficult if it's just a normal dry race."

Renault forced to replace three MGU-Hs after Ricciardo problem
Honda faces dilemma over Alonso's F1 engine after Austria failure

Latest news
The design changes teams face as F1 launch season begins
Formula 1 fans are eagerly waiting to see how much of the Red Bull RB19 being unveiled in New York City later on Friday is actually new.
Friday favourite: How Volvo's "no ego" pole king endeared himself to a BTCC champion
With the likes of Andy Rouse, Steve Soper, Alain Menu and Paul Radisich to chose from, Tim Harvey is spoiled for choice when it comes to picking a favourite team-mate. But it's a driver that the 1992 British Touring Car champion only raced alongside for a single season, Swedish ace Rickard Rydell, that is his number one in our ongoing weekly series
Why Gran Turismo 7 is a revelation in virtual reality
OPINION: The PSVR2 and the upcoming Gran Turismo 7 update provides the best console virtual reality experience to date, setting an example for other developers to follow
Bathurst 12 Hour: Marciello puts Mercedes on top in Friday practice
GruppeM Mercedes ended Friday on top at the Bathurst 12 Hour after Rafaelle Marciello topped the times in a crash shortened final practice.
Assessing Hamilton's remarkable decade as a Mercedes F1 driver
Many doubted Lewis Hamilton’s move from McLaren to Mercedes for the 2013 Formula 1 season. But the journey he’s been on since has taken the Briton to new heights - and to a further six world championship titles
Why new look Haas is a litmus test for Formula 1’s new era
OPINION: With teams outside the top three having struggled in Formula 1 in recent seasons, the rules changes introduced in 2022 should have more of an impact this season. How well Haas does, as the poster child for the kind of team that F1 wanted to be able to challenge at the front, is crucial
The Mercedes F1 pressure changes under 10 years of Toto Wolff
OPINION: Although the central building blocks for Mercedes’ recent, long-lasting Formula 1 success were installed before he joined the team, Toto Wolff has been instrumental in ensuring it maximised its finally-realised potential after years of underachievement. The 10-year anniversary of Wolff joining Mercedes marks the perfect time to assess his work
The all-French F1 partnership that Ocon and Gasly hope to emulate
Alpine’s signing of Pierre Gasly alongside Esteban Ocon revives memories of a famous all-French line-up, albeit in the red of Ferrari, for BEN EDWARDS. Can the former AlphaTauri man's arrival help the French team on its path back to winning ways in a tribute act to the Prancing Horse's title-winning 1983?
How do the best races of F1 2022 stack up to 2021?
OPINION: A system to score all the grands prix from the past two seasons produces some interesting results and sets a standard that 2023 should surely exceed
Who were the fastest drivers in F1 2022?
Who was the fastest driver in 2022? Everyone has an opinion, but what does the stopwatch say? Obviously, differing car performance has an effect on ultimate laptime – but it’s the relative speed of each car/driver package that’s fascinating and enlightening says ALEX KALINAUCKAS
Why F1's nearly man is refreshed and ready for his return
He has more starts without a podium than anyone else in Formula 1 world championship history, but Nico Hulkenberg is back for one more shot with Haas. After spending three years on the sidelines, the revitalised German is aiming to prove to his new team what the F1 grid has been missing
The potential-laden F1 car that Ferrari neglected
The late Mauro Forghieri played a key role in Ferrari’s mid-1960s turnaround, says STUART CODLING, and his pretty, intricate 1512 was among the most evocative cars of the 1.5-litre era. But a victim of priorities as Formula 1 was deemed less lucrative than success in sportscars, its true potential was never seen in period
Subscribe and access Autosport.com with your ad-blocker.
From Formula 1 to MotoGP we report straight from the paddock because we love our sport, just like you. In order to keep delivering our expert journalism, our website uses advertising. Still, we want to give you the opportunity to enjoy an ad-free and tracker-free website and to continue using your adblocker.
You have 2 options:
- Become a subscriber.
- Disable your adblocker.