Categories: F1 News, Reports and Race ResultsToro Rosso

Wrong Toro Rosso strategy call cost Hartley points

Brendon Hartley rued a lost chance in Hungary to double his championship-point tally, pinning that failure on a bad strategy call by Toro Rosso.

The Kiwi took a conservative approach to his start, backing off into Turn 1 as he was battling team mate Pierre Gasly for position, but losing a position to Haas' Kevin Magnussen.

Later on, an early stop and swap to the medium compound permanently put him out of contention for a top-ten finish. All in all, it was a missed opportunity for Hartley after his strong performance in qualifying.

"I’m disappointed not to score points after a strong qualifying," he admitted.

"I had a great start but decided not to dive up the inside of Gasly which ultimately lost me a place to Magnussen.

Gasly hails 'the best thing that could have happened to us'

"My race was then destroyed as I was stuck behind Sainz during the first half of the race when he was on a harder tyre. We then reacted too early to Hulkenberg pitting behind and putting the Medium tyre, which didn’t give me the best performance.

"I fully understand why the team split the strategies but today it didn’t work out for me," he added

The 28-year-old is doing his best to step up his performance in a bid to keep his drive with Toro Rosso in 2019.

"It’s disappointing," he said.

"I didn’t really make any mistakes today. I didn’t lose any places on track. But I ended up out of the points.

"I’m happy for the team to score more points which is a nice reward for all the hard work over the last months."

Gallery: The beautiful wives and girlfriends of F1 drivers

Keep up to date with all the F1 news via Facebook and Twitter

Phillip van Osten

Motor racing was a backdrop from the outset in Phillip van Osten's life. Born in Southern California, Phillip grew up with the sights and sounds of fast cars thanks to his father, Dick van Osten, an editor and writer for Auto Speed and Sport and Motor Trend. Phillip's passion for racing grew even more when his family moved to Europe and he became acquainted with the extraordinary world of Grand Prix racing. He was an early contributor to the monthly French F1i Magazine, often providing a historic or business perspective on Formula 1's affairs. In 2012, he co-authored along with fellow journalist Pierre Van Vliet the English-language adaptation of a limited edition book devoted to the great Belgian driver Jacky Ickx. He also authored "The American Legacy in Formula 1", a book which recounts the trials and tribulations of American drivers in Grand Prix racing. Phillip is also a commentator for Belgian broadcaster Be.TV for the US Indycar series.