Quebec driver Lance Stroll will have a lot to do this Sunday to help Racing Point retain their third position in the Constructors’ Championship as the two McLaren cars start ahead of him.
Stroll did qualify in eighth place on Saturday for the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. Lando Norris and Carlos Sainz, who team up at McLaren, will start fourth and sixth respectively.
“The two McLaren cars may be in front, but if we have a good start and use a good racing strategy, I think we can move forward and fight to keep third in the constructors’ championship,” commented Stroll, on the Racing Point website.
This fight to finish for third place in the constructors’ standings promises to be exciting, to say the least, especially as Sergio Perez, Stroll’s teammate, was relegated to the back of the grid on Friday following changes in components of its engine. He will start 19th precisely.
To sum up the situation, Racing Point has 194 points in the championship while McLaren is currently in fourth place (184). Already, the Mercedes team have easily won the constructors’ standings, ahead of Red Bull, but we are trying to find out which team will be the “best of the rest”. Beyond the honor, millions of dollars are at stake.
A fight to end
To illustrate how close the race is, let’s assume that nothing moves facing the starting grid – that Norris finishes fourth (12 points), Sainz sixth (8), Stroll eighth (4) and Perez, outside the points-, McLaren would lead Racing Point by six points in the constructors’ championship.
“The goal is to work in order to obtain points because the day today (Saturday) shows how tight it is likely to be for the third position of the constructors’ championship”, observed in turn Perez.
Max Verstappen (Red Bull) took the lead in Abu Dhabi, ahead of the two Mercedes cars driven by Valtteri Bottas and Lewis Hamilton.
“It was not the easiest qualifying because I found the car a bit difficult to maneuver,” said Stroll finally, about his eighth place. It’s too early to explain exactly why it was difficult, but I’m confident we’ll work on it and find the answers we need for the race. ”
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