The mechanics stall for Vettel in Austria

Feelings are necessarily shared within the Team Ferrari at the end of qualifying for the Austrian Grand Prix. Charles Leclerc took pole position (the second of his career), after a superb performance against Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes) and Max Verstappen (Red Bull), with a new track record at stake.

But Ferrari had to deal with the technical problems encountered by the SF90 of Sebastian Vettel between Q2 and Q3, while the Italian clan had just achieved the double at the end of the second part of qualifying.

The mechanics rushed to the left side of the car of the German, initially suggesting a flat bottom problem before the Maranello team confirmed an air pressure problem at the engine level, a concern linked to the engine's pneumatic system, in comments reported by Sky Sports.

“We couldn't restart and start again, admits Vettel at the microphone of the English channel. We lost part of Q2 and therefore Q3 entirely. We made the decision very quickly to change (the elements) but it takes time because the bodywork has to be removed.

The guys did what they could, but couldn't do it in time. It’s frustrating, but there was nothing to do from the cockpit of the car. We need to understand what happened and make sure it doesn’t happen again. »

Without a time in the session, Vettel finished Q3 in 10th position but could count on the five-place penalty of Kevin Magnussen (Haas) for gearbox change to move up one rank in the hierarchy.