Scott McLaughlin has confirmed how he took a sensational pole position in St Petersburg despite a high profile crash during practice.
McLaughlin stole pole position away from Colton Herta, in the dying seconds of qualifying for tomorrow’s St Petersburg Grand Prix.
The Kiwi emphatically took P1 by over two tenths of a second, marking the 11th time McLaughlin has taken the top spot in qualifying.
However, just 24 hours earlier, his weekend prospects looked bleak after a dramatic practice crash destroyed his Penske.
Overcoming the setback, he was understandably delighted during the post-qualifying press conference.
Scott McLaughlin: Pole position “an improvement on yesterday”
Speaking to media during the press conference, including Fastest Formula News, McLaughlin admitted the car had improved significantly over the weekend.
“It was an improvement on yesterday for sure. But we still had to keep working at it. I thought the best the car’s been this weekend is obviously in qualifying.
“That was the main thing. So, yeah, I was really happy with it. Only in Q2 was where I wasn’t happy and we turned it around.“
McLaughlin admitted that despite his success in qualifying, his focus had already turned to the race. He said a win was his primary target.
“Look, payday’s tomorrow. So I can’t speak on behalf of Colton (Herta), but I’m sure he’s the same way. We just want to get a good race under our belt tomorrow.
“Ideally a win, but you try and get away here with a podium or a top five, and you sort of just run away with it.
So it’s a nice feeling to take those points and get going.
“For my circumstance, I need a stronger start compared to my last few years to make sure that I’m not chasing my tail halfway through the year. “
Elaborating on his spectacular practice crash, McLaughlin said it was important to repay his mechanics for the extensive rebuilding they had to do.
“For sure, obviously. The hit that I had yesterday wasn’t as bad as it looked. The theatrics were pretty crazy.
“But ultimately you hate giving the team extra work and go over the garage hours and whatnot. So get anything you can do to repay them. They always say just go out and get pole or do whatever.
“The team, they love working on it. Yeah, the long hours suck, but it’s kind of a passion. And it’s just nice to repay them in some ways.
“The only way I can do it apart from maybe a Coors Light after the race or something like that“
Feature Image Credit: Penske Entertainment
