Williams hopes for rain for the race

Saturday in Hungary was marked by the very surprising performance of the Williams during Free Practice 3. Nicholas latifi had in fact signed an unexpected best time, ahead of Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) and his teammate Alex Albon. A result obtained on a wet track. Back in the dry for qualifying, the two drivers from the British team found themselves back at the bottom of the standings, with 17th place for Albon and 20th for Latifs. The Canadian, however, seemed to be embarking on a new feat in his last attempt, with the record for the first sector. However, an error in the last corner cost him a possible passage into Q2.

“After positive Free Practice 3 in the wet, we had to review our expectations for qualifying in the dry, reacted the Williams driver. JI was looking to move into Q2, but I missed it in the last corner. It's frustrating to make a mistake here. I was surprised to learn that I had a purple area. However, we still lack some downforce in the package, so we know where we need to improve. It's difficult to overtake here, but we will look to capitalize on any opportunities that may present themselves in tomorrow's race. »

“I was really happy with my qualifying lap, judged Alex Albon for his part. It was tricky to go from a wet practice session to a dry qualification, the wind changed and we lacked a little downforce. We are very fast on the straights, but it is not the most useful around this track. We will do a rain dance before tomorrow and we will see what we can do in terms of strategy. »

After this Saturday of (very) ups and downs, Williams is hoping for the rain to return during the race to take advantage of the pace displayed in these conditions. “Today (Saturday) was mixed in many ways, judged Dave Robson, head of performance at Grove. Lhe wet conditions for Free Practice 3 were not unexpected and with the rain potentially lasting until qualifying, we opted to run on both the wet and intermediate tires during this session. Both drivers were satisfied with their cars and were able to complete good runs without any problems. We obviously showed good pace in the wet, which was encouraging and nice. However, with qualifying ultimately taking place in dry conditions, we knew we would struggle more. » 

With the conditions of this Sunday morning at the Hungaroring, the wishes of the English team seem to have been granted. Meet at 15 p.m. French time for the start of the race to follow in live text on AUTOhebdo.fr.

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