2026 Austrian Grand Prix - Saturday

It was a solid result from the team, as the battle for the front of the midfield unfolded on the short, power-dominated Austrian circuit. The team extracted the most from its package and, aided by the good long-run pace shown in practice, will be aiming to make up the handful of places that separates it from the points-paying positions.

Allan McNish, Racing Director: "While we didn’t get a spot in the top ten, I want to give credit to the drivers and the engineers today as I think we realistically delivered the maximum the car could offer today. Gabi extracted the most from the car with his final lap in Q2: it was a very neat and tidy lap, but unfortunately it wasn't quite enough to progress into Q3. From a race perspective, though, it still gives us a solid starting position.

“For Nico, it was a slightly more difficult session. He pushed his car to the limit in trying to get every little bit of performance out of it, and being so close to the edge ultimately left him in P14. We have shown encouraging long-run pace throughout the weekend, so there is still plenty to fight for in the race, even if the hot conditions are set to provide another challenge.”

Nico Hulkenberg (Car 27):
FP3: 12th / 1:08.303 (22 laps)
Q1: 1:08.066 (9 laps)
Q2: 14th / 1:07.611 (6 laps)

“It’s been a challenging weekend so far. Around here the margins are always incredibly small, and I just didn’t quite find the rhythm with the car in qualifying. On a circuit like this, that makes a big difference. This circuit hasn’t suited us quite as well as Barcelona, and we know there are still areas we need to improve.

"Looking ahead to tomorrow, I’m more optimistic. Our long-run pace looked more encouraging than our qualifying pace, and with the temperatures expected to stay high, tyre management and reliability will be key. There should still be opportunities if we execute a clean race.”

Gabriel Bortoleto (Car 5):
FP3: 13th / 1:08.311 (22 laps)
Q1: 1:08.035 (6 laps)
Q2: 12th / 1:07.293 (6 laps)

"I'm really happy with my lap today, and in general with how the weekend has gone so far. We may have missed out on the top ten, but I feel that qualifying lap was as close to ideal as it could have been, and the pace we've had across every corner was very encouraging. I hadn’t been able to put the car in a comfortable window in the last few races, but it seems like we've gone in a different direction here: the upgrades we are bringing this weekend seem to be working in a way that suits us better.

"Everyone has been working incredibly hard, both at Hinwil and Neuburg, together with the trackside team, and it's nice to see that effort paying off. Hopefully, this is a step in the right direction, and we can keep building our confidence from here. Now, the focus is on tomorrow's race, bring the confidence back up and start building from there."