Williams driver Logan Sargeant overcame his own eagerness to deal with qualifying "pressure" and make his first venture into Q2 at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix. The American had failed to match the one-lap performances of established teammate Alex Albon in the opening three rounds of his rookie campaign with mistakes creeping into his driving - particularly in Saudi Arabia. But in a much-improved display, Sargeant paired pace with accuracy to advance past the first session for the first time in his career, all the more impressive given the heightened pressure presented by the two lengthy red flag periods triggered by crashes for Alpine's Pierre Gasly and AlphaTauri rookie Nyck de Vries. "First Q2, that feels good and happy to deliver the lap late in Q1 under pressure so that was a nice feeling," Sargeant told media, including RacingNews365.com . "Good to see Alex having good pace and I just went for it, knew I needed to find something and made a few small mistakes so that cost me. But I am happy with the jump I made from practice to quali."
Staying in the moment
Sargeant had alluded to the mental pressures of qualifying playing a part in his early-season struggles ahead of the weekend. But when asked if he felt he was in a better place mentally ahead of the session in Baku, Sargeant replied: "Not in a bad mental place but I was a little bit too eager and maybe wanted a bit too much. "I just stayed in the moment, I knew the pressure was on for that last lap and I am just happy I stayed in the moment and delivered."
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