Vettel: Ferrari's double Q2 exit at F1 Belgian GP "not a surprise"
Sebastian Vettel says Ferrari's double Q2 elimination in Formula 1 qualifying for the Belgian Grand Prix was "not a surprise" given its ongoing struggles
Ferrari slumped to its worst qualifying performance of the 2020 season so far at Spa on Saturday as both Charles Leclerc and Vettel were eliminated in Q2, finishing 13th and 14th respectively.
The team has struggled throughout the race weekend, with Leclerc scraping through Q1 by less than one-tenth of a second.
It meant Ferrari ended qualifying as the seventh-fastest team, only beating the cars from Williams, Alfa Romeo and Haas.
"It is the true picture of what the car can do around here today," Vettel said after the session.
"Obviously we tried everything we can, and there was a lot of effort going in from last night to today trying to make things better.
"I think we did a little bit. Obviously we're not where we want to be, but that's not the first race and the first qualifying where that's the case."
PLUS: The Spa times that show how much Ferrari has lost in a year
Vettel added that it was "no surprise" given Ferrari's current struggles with the SF1000 car, and felt it was doubtful the team would even reach Q2 after propping up the timesheets in final practice.
"P13 is not as exciting as P1, but still we tried to put everything together," Vettel said.
"This morning we looked like we didn't make it to Q2 and we did with both cars.
"Obviously that's not a success, but it's everything we could do today and where we stand."
The result marks a significant fall for Ferrari since it locked out the front row of the grid for last year's Belgian Grand Prix, with pole-sitter Leclerc going on to win the race.
Leclerc said after qualifying that it was "very difficult" to give an explanation for why Ferrari had lost so much performance in the space of a year.
"It's a big step back from the others, so we need to try and find the main issue to try and address it," Leclerc said.
"It's not a good day but it's like this at the moment. We need to keep working hard.
"Everybody in the team needs to keep their heads up, even though it's very difficult on a day like this.
"I can also understand the fans at home that are very disappointed. It's understandable, but as drivers, we'll try to make the best race possible tomorrow, even though we can't expect any miracles."
Previous article
Hamilton: Hard to regain focus after Chadwick Boseman's death
Next article
Verstappen: Running out of energy didn't cost front row start for F1 Belgian GP
The IndyCar feature that Paul Ricard desperately needs in F1
OPINION: The French Grand Prix offered a surprisingly interesting spectacle, despite the headache-inducing nature of the circuit. But IndyCar's Road America race offered far more in terms of action - and the increased jeopardy at the Elkhart Lake venue might be something Paul Ricard needs in future...
French Grand Prix Driver Ratings
The French GP was a weekend decided by tiny margins both at the front of the field, as Red Bull inflicted a comeback defeat on Mercedes, and in the battle for the minor points places. That's reflected in our driver ratings, where several drivers came close to a maximum score
How Red Bull took French GP "payback" on a day of Mercedes mistakes
The French GP has been a stronghold for Mercedes since Paul Ricard's return to the calendar in 2018. But that all changed on Sunday, as a clever two-stop strategy guided Red Bull's Max Verstappen to make a race-winning pass on the penultimate lap - for once leaving Mercedes to experience the pain of late defeat it has so often inflicted on Red Bull
The new age of sponsorship facilitated by F1’s relevancy push
The age of the high-profile title sponsor is over, says JONATHAN NOBLE, but Formula 1’s commitment to technological innovation is attracting high-tech partners
How Britain’s lost Ferrari star epitomised a bygone F1 era
The 1956 Italian Grand Prix was over for Juan Manuel Fangio, along with his hopes of winning the world championship – until his Ferrari team-mate (and title rival) voluntarily surrendered his own car so Fangio could continue. NIGEL ROEBUCK recalls Peter Collins, a remarkable sportsman
The 'surprise' Mercedes time that puts F1's victory fight back on a knife-edge in France
Red Bull led the way after the first two practice sessions for the 2021 French Grand Prix, but only just ahead of Mercedes. There was all the usual practice skulduggery complicating the performance picture, but one aspect seen at the world champion squad gave it a ‘surprise’ lift, as it looks to leave its street-circuit struggles firmly in the past
How Ferrari got its F1 recovery plan working
After its worst campaign in 40 years, the famous Italian team had to bounce back in 2021 – and it appears to be delivering. Although it concedes the pole positions in Monaco and Baku paint a somewhat misleading picture of its competitiveness, the team is heading into the 2022 rules revamp on much stronger footing to go for wins again
The joy that exposes F1’s key weakness
Long-awaited wins for ex-Formula 1 drivers Marcus Ericsson and Kevin Magnussen in IndyCar and IMSA last weekend gave F1 a reminder of what it is missing. But with the new rules aimed at levelling the playing field, there’s renewed optimism that more drivers can have a rewarding result when their day of days comes
