Ferrari driver Maya Ug when F1 Academy practice ended on Friday at Saudi Arabia’s Grand Prix Timing sheet top Before Alisha Palmowski and Doriane Pin.
However, Weug predicts a tough fight for pole position late tonight in qualifying.
“This car feels really good. I managed to get a clean lap and do the program we’re planning on. I need to set it up to make some adjustments here and there and make sure I can extract everything tonight,” Weug said. Following the practice session.
“It’s going to be very close because the practice was already very close. It’s a long lap and we’re going to try and get the pole tonight, so we need to make sure we make the smallest mistakes while possible throughout the lap.”
Weug also believes grip levels will vary significantly during qualifying as sessions come in the evening and follow the track action of the day. That extra rubber is on the surface of the Jeddah Cornish circuit, so there is more grip per driver and perhaps more time will be found.
But getting used to the evolution of the track will be a big part of qualifying under the light.
“We’ve got two F1 sessions now, and the F2 has Quali, so we’re getting the grips to the fullest, so the grips are insanely higher than before,” he said when asked what the toughest part of the qualifying round would be.
“When it gets cooler, the track gets even better. So in the first run you either take everything out of the grip or know where the grip is. Then in the second run you get everything.
As PIN pointed out earlier this week, qualifying is important to achieve the best possible outcome, as it was difficult to pass in the F1 Academy race in Saudi Arabia last season. Weug knows that when big points are handed out, he needs to put a big performance under the lights to start ahead of the second race.
“The overtaking last year, last year is also difficult with dirty air and heat,” Weug said. “It’s really important to get good quality, and we still need to do some moves in the first race. It’s so much fun, so we’re looking forward to the reverse grid race.”
