Vasseur: Alfa's race lost in qualifying after double Q2 exit

Alfa Romeo team boss Frédéric Vasseur says the Swiss outfit's Monaco Grand Prix was already done and dusted on Saturday after its botched performance in qualifying.

Both Kimi Raikkonen and Antonio Giovinazzi failed to make the Q3 cut, leaving both drivers to contend with the pitfalls that typically threaten those racing down the order in Monte-Carlo.

Raikkonen's reliance on a long opening first stint on soft tyres yielded a disappointing P17 at the checkered flag while Giovinazzi collided with Williams Robert Kubica early on and made up the rear thereafter.

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"I think that we lost the race in Q2," Vasseur said.

"The pace was there in FP1, FP2 and FP3, we were consistently in the top 10.

"Then between Q1 and Q2 we lost something - we were slower in Q2 compared to Q1, and considering the track improvement and so on, it's just unrealistic. Then we fucked up the weekend.

"We have to do a proper analysis of what we did well or wrong, but the pace was there at some stages of the weekend. We have to build up to the next one on this basis.

"From one session to the other you could destroy the weekend. It was more or less the opposite for Sainz, he was nowhere at the beginning, and he came back."

©AlfaRomeo

Vasseur also emphasized his drivers' poor start to their race on Sunday.

"We had a poor first lap," added the Frenchman.

"Kimi almost spun with Stroll, then Antonio also had a poor start and was stuck behind both of the Williams. Then it's done.

"He spent 15 laps behind Kubica, and at least he tried. We can't blame him.

"We know that if you have to overtake it's risky, but if you say let's stay behind you might as well just do the qualifying."

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