Perez wants to make up positions in sprint race: "Pleased with the pace"

Sergio Perez was the victim of bad timing during qualifying in Imola. The Mexican was hampered by the red flags, which were waved frequently during the session and caused many aborted laps.

The Red Bull Racing driver speaks of a disappointing day, but still sees plenty of opportunities in the sprint race. "It just didn’t seem to work out for me today," he says in a Red Bull Racing press release. "It was important to get the temperature on the tyres and we couldn’t seem to get the right out lap."

The moment he was just warming up his tires, the next red flag popped up. This prevented Perez from making a good attempt to improve his time, which means he will start from P7 in the sprint race.

Nevertheless, he also takes positives from the qualifying session. "I am pleased with the pace of the car though, I am looking forward to tomorrow," Perez continued. He hopes to work his way to the front during the sprint race to secure a good starting position for Sunday's race.