Romain Grosjean hampered by the pace of the Mercedes

The disappointment can be read in the declarations of Romain Grosjean after the qualifying session for the Monaco Grand Prix. The French driver, 15th this Saturday afternoon, hoped for better, and did not hide his frustration about the Q2 scenario from which he was unable to escape.

“We had the speed to go to Q3, specifies the former resident of the Lotus team. We showed it during Q1. Just twice there was traffic on my exit laps in Q2. We came out behind the Mercedes which were at a slower tempo, and that’s what bothered me.

If the tires had been at the right temperature for the first timed lap everything would have been fine, but they were difficult to warm up. Everyone carries out different strategies, of course. Mercedes has more downforce than others, they went slower when I had to do faster laps. Traffic is part of the game, but twice we returned to the track in exactly the same group of cars, and that didn't help us. »

The Frenchman, however, remained satisfied with the progress made on the VF-16 during the weekend. “The positive point is that the car is doing better, but the negative point remains that we are fifteenth on the grid. » hammered Grosjean, beaten in the exercise by his teammate Esteban Gutiérrez.

Photos from the Monaco Grand Prix can be viewed in our dedicated gallery.