Sergio Perez described his final lap in Q3 as “fantastic” after qualifying seventh for the Russian Grand Prix.

While team-mate Nico Hulkenberg dropped out in Q2, Perez managed to make it through to the final part of qualifying for the second race in succession. The Force India driver then managed to outqualify Daniil Kvyat and Max Verstappen, and will start sixth as a result of Sebastian Vettel’s grid penalty.

“I am very pleased with our performance today and my final lap in Q3 was fantastic – just when it mattered,” Perez said. “We were strong in Q1 and Q2; I was feeling very comfortable in the car and I was able to deliver great laps in each of the sessions.”

Force India has enjoyed good qualifying form so far this season but failed to translate that into results, but Perez is confident it is in better shape in Russia.

“We are making good progress as a team and our pace over one lap is very strong: it will be interesting to see how we perform tomorrow because we have a fast car behind us and it will be a big challenge to hold our position.

“This is not a track that helps overtaking so there should be some nice battles. We have enough tyres to choose the best strategy tomorrow and I am optimistic we can come away with a nice result.”

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AS IT HAPPENED: Russian Grand Prix – Qualifying

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