Honda is positive: 'Trying to gain even more for qualifying'

Honda have had a strong start in Austria. Max Verstappen topped both practice sessions and AlphaTauri also looked good. However, Pierre Gasly had to miss the second practice session due to an engine problem.

"After the first session, we noticed something on the data of Pierre’s PU that required further investigation, and the time required to investigate it fully meant the Frenchman unfortunately missed out on FP2," Honda reports on their official website.

Honda goes for more gains

Sergio Perez did not perform as expected, but this was due to a spin that left him outside the top ten in the first practice session. The second free practice also didn't go as planned, partly due to yellow flags that were in the way of the driver.

Light rain made the second practice a bit more difficult, but Yuki Tsunoda provided a lot of data through the 39 laps he drove, according to Honda.

"We will now analyse all of the information we have gained throughout Friday’s running and look to make further gains ahead of qualifying on Saturday afternoon," Honda concluded.

"Overall, both our teams had a satisfactory first day of practice for the Styrian Grand Prix, although we did have an issue with Pierre’s car." #StyrianGP #PoweredByHonda

— Honda Racing F1 (@HondaRacingF1) June 25, 2021