P1racenews AI automatic summary:
Wolff: Mercedes F1 blew Brazil pole chance by not being “adaptive” enough
During the Q3 segment of qualifying at the Interlagos circuit, teams recognized the importance of getting out on track early before the rain arrived. Lewis Hamilton and George Russell were third and fourth in the queue behind the Aston Martins, but they didn’t take full advantage of the opportunity to warm up their tires. Unlike their cautious approach, the Aston Martin drivers pushed hard to increase tire temperature on their out-laps. This led to Hamilton and Russell finishing fifth and sixth on the grid. Mercedes boss Toto Wolff admitted that the team should have been more adaptable to the changing conditions. He believed that any grid position between first and eighth was possible due to the mixed conditions in Q3. Mercedes trackside engineering director Andrew Shovlin agreed that being at the front of the pack was the right choice, but they lost too much tire temperature while waiting for the green light. Hamilton acknowledged that fifth place was not ideal and that they seemed to be a couple of tenths off the top performers. He attributed their position to the challenging weather conditions at the end of qualifying.
Forrás: motorsport
