How Mick Schumacher explains his role in the playoffs

(Motorsport-Total.com) – Shortly before the end of the first part of F1 qualifying in Austin: Mick Schumacher still has one last chance to advance, but he’s not using it – spin turn 1 He destroys his last lap shortly after he started. So it’s clear: the Haas driver Schumacher does not make it past the first quarter and is only 19th in qualifying for the 2022 USA Grand Prix.

Schumacher blames the spin on the special conditions in Austin: “It was very windy, the track is full of bumps. You’re pretty much at the limit with these cars. What happened in Turn 1 was unfortunate,” explains the German racing driver.

In an interview with Sky, Schumacher adds: “Of course you want to get through the first corner safely and then try to get the most out of it, because we definitely have a Q2, if not a Q3.” Schumacher continued that it was “so frustrating and just a shame” that it could not be proven.

Magnussen also misses Turn 1

The same spot on the Circuit of the Americas in Austin was also fatal for Haas teammate Kevin Magnussen. “Apart from Turn 1, it went really well,” said the Dane. “I lost three-tenths there when I caught the bump in the middle.”

“We did pretty well all weekend and the car didn’t jump much in there, but for some reason, the car did [im Qualifying] Scary jump. That’s when I lost my butt and the three-tenths were gone. It was a bit unfortunate.”

Expressed in numbers: Magnussen clocked a time of 1:36.949 minutes in Q1 and lost the lead in Q2 by 0.017 seconds. On the other hand, Schumacher stayed at 1:37.111 minutes and lost about one and a half tenths to his teammate. This increased in Qualifying duel for Haas drivers So 14:5 against Schumacher.

Team boss Steiner thinks: There was more to this for Haas

And team boss Gunther Steiner doesn’t seem to be impressed with his team’s result: “The car didn’t perform as expected. It seemed like Q2 was within our reach, but we didn’t get it because both drivers didn’t manage each of the second laps.”

“It’s very tight in midfield. You’re either in the third quarter or outside the first quarter. That last one happened to us.”

Technical breakdown is costing Schumacher training time

A technical glitch from the third free practice session could also have contributed to Schumacher’s qualifying performance: he lost more than half an hour in Austin in the morning after a water pump failed in his VF-22. “He could still drive, but it wasn’t perfect,” Steiner says.

After all, Magnussen was able to gather valuable data for the team in the sister car Haas. “And in the long run, Kevin looked fit,” Steiner says. “Hopefully we can be in the midfield on Sunday. We should be able to do something from P15 and P18.”

Magnussen thinks similarly: “Sunday is a new day. Austin is a course where you can fight and overtake. So if we have the speed, we can still resist.”

Why is Schumacher still thinking about the points

On the other hand, Schumacher is upset that he missed the qualification. “The pace seemed right. We don’t know what would have been possible, but my gut feeling tells me it could have been good,” the German said.

Schumacher is now pinning his hopes on his teammate’s data to have “some potential” for the race, “to go ahead and score points”. Above all, he was confident: “The car looks good here.”