Max 19th in qualifying due to technical issues: “I felt something was wrong”

Published on 08 April 2017 by Mike Motilall

Max Verstappen didn’t make it pass 19th during qualifying at the Chinese Grand Prix. The Dutchman ran into software issues regarding the engine of the RB13. This prevented him to clock a decent enough lap time. Hamilton was able to take the pole, followed by Vettel and Bottas.

“We had some engine problems, there was no power”, says a disappointed Max after the session. “The engine wasn’t running as it should, you could hear it making a 'cracking' noise and that’s not right. It had nothing to do with the fuel flow, you could clearly hear that. When I went out, I told the team ‘this doesn’t feel right’. They said ‘give it a go’ and if you feel anything, switch to ‘safe mode’, but there is no power in safe mode. So I tried a lap that way, in order to make it through to Q2, but there was no speed at all.” We are still checking what could have caused this problem, albeit said, this is of course not what we wanted. In normal circumstances, we could have been fifth or sixth, but it is what it is.”

The predicted rain before the race, would work out perfectly for Max: “It would be better if it rained. We aren’t that competitive compared to Mercedes and Ferrari, but I will do my best to get to the front and overtake others.” Max is not thinking of a re-run of his magnificent race in Brazil last season: “I just want to enjoy it tomorrow.”

After a completely rained out Friday at the Shanghai International Circuit, the Gods have been good for the Formula 1-circus today, regarding the weather. The third practice session was done on a completely dry track and also qualifying took place under dry conditions. Max Verstappen patiently waits to get on the circuit. With over ten minutes left on the clock, Max heads out on track for the first part of qualifying with the super-soft tyres strapped on. Just then, Romain Grosjean spins exiting the last corner. He miraculously manages to keep his Haas out of the barriers and is able to continue on. Max is forced to abort his first flying lap, ‘there is something wrong with the engine’, he tells his team before heading in the pits. After a brief visit, the youngster heads back out with still five minutes remaining on the clock. The problem with the RB13 has not been solved, ‘same thing again’, Max tells his team. With a 1:35.433, Verstappen does the 17th fastest time. When the flag drops, Antonio Giovinazzi hits the wall getting on the straight to start/finish, resulting in a severely damaged Sauber. The Italian manages to get out of the car unscathed, despite having been able to get through to Q2, qualifying is over for him. Verstappen finishes in 19th due to technical issues, this seems to be a software issue to his engine. The only one behind him is Ocon. Palmer, Grosjean and Vandoorne are the other dropouts in Q1.

The start of the second part of qualifying is delayed due to the fixing of the tyre wall after Giovinazzi's crash. Ferrari and Mercedes are once again dictating the tempo. Ricciardo and Hulkenberg trail quite considerably. Q2 sees Ericsson, Alonso, Magnussen and Sainz drop out. In the fight for pole, Lewis Hamilton clocks a 1:31.678, the fastest pole ever in China. Some two tenths faster than Vettel. Bottas and Raikkonen finish in third and fourth. Ricciardo takes fifth, trailing quite considerably.

Verstappen, starting from 19th, is gearing up for a catch-up race. The predicted rain could help out the Dutchman.

Chinese Grand Prix - Shanghai International Circuit - Saturday 8 April

QUALIFYING RESULTS:

01 44 Lewis Hamilton      Mercedes                    1:33.333 1:32.406 1:31.678 13
02  5 Sebastian Vettel    Ferrari                     1:33.078 1:32.391 1:31.864 15
03 77 Valtteri Bottas     Mercedes                    1:33.684 1:32.552 1:31.865 14
04  7 Kimi Räikkönen      Ferrari                     1:33.341 1:32.181 1:32.140 15
05  3 Daniel Ricciardo    Red Bull Racing TAG Heuer   1:34.041 1:33.546 1:33.033 12
06 19 Felipe Massa        Williams Mercedes           1:34.205 1:33.759 1:33.507 14
07 27 Nico Hulkenberg     Renault                     1:34.453 1:33.636 1:33.580 16
08 11 Sergio Perez        Force India Mercedes        1:34.657 1:33.920 1:33.706 15
09 26 Daniil Kvyat        Toro Rosso                  1:34.440 1:34.034 1:33.719 17
10 18 Lance Stroll        Williams Mercedes           1:33.986 1:34.090 1:34.220 18
11 55 Carlos Sainz        Toro Rosso                  1:34.567 1:34.150 11
12 20 Kevin Magnussen     Haas Ferrari                1:34.942 1:34.164 12
13 14 Fernando Alonso     McLaren Honda               1:34.499 1:34.372 11
14  9 Marcus Ericsson     Sauber Ferrari              1:34.892 1:35.046 15
15 36 Antonio Giovinazzi  Sauber Ferrari              1:34.963 8
16  2 Stoffel Vandoorne   McLaren Honda               1:35.023 6
17  8 Romain Grosjean     Haas Ferrari                1:35.223 6
18 30 Jolyon Palmer       Renault                     1:35.279 6
19 33 Max Verstappen      Red Bull Racing TAG Heuer   1:35.433 7
20 31 Esteban Ocon        Force India Mercedes        1:35.496 8

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