Interview
‘Take the negatives and accept the positives’ — Countryman reveals challenge ahead first-ever Reverse Grid Race pole
Kaylee Countryman was left feeling encouraged after she scored her first top-eight result in Qualifying, with the Haas driver optimistic about her chances in Montreal.
In her second F1 ACADEMY weekend, Countryman seemed to gel with the Circuit Gilles-Villeneuve. Needing to put together two personal best laps, the American qualified eighth overall and ninth with her second-fastest times, setting herself up well for points in all three races.
Judging the track evolution between sessions has been one of her biggest challenges as a rookie, leaving Countryman satisfied with how she coped with the sizeable jump in grip on Friday evening.
“It was great,” she began. “In the beginning, the track was quite different from how it felt in Free Practice earlier today. We were the first ones on track, so it was very dusty and dirty. After F1 and F2 went out, then there was definitely a noticeable change in grip.
“It was pretty much on from the start, the tyres came in really quickly. The time I set in the beginning wasn’t bad by any means but I felt there was more in the tank. I started to make a few mistakes in the session unfortunately and then towards the end, I finally put the lap together.”
It was a positive step forward for Countryman, who struggled to make progress during the opening round in Shanghai. Crediting the jump in performance to her changed mindset, the Haas driver admitted she felt more relaxed despite the lack of running in Montreal beforehand.
“Compared to Shanghai, we stopped on track. Unfortunately, I did something which caused a little bit of an electrical issue, so that caused the Red Flag which deleted the fastest lap. In Shanghai, I think I had the pressure get to me a little more, which isn’t what we want. We do it because it’s fun, so I should have kept that in mind looking back at Shanghai.
“Looking to here now, it was definitely quite a big jump. The biggest thing that changed though was mental. In Shanghai, I was feel the pressure a little bit, but here I didn’t really think about anybody else whilst I was out there.
“I was just telling myself where I have the pace to be. Looking at the data, take the negatives but you accept the positives as well, so just believe in yourself a little bit more — that was the main difference.”
Qualifying in eighth, Countryman now lines up on pole for the Reverse Grid Race. Looking forward to the task ahead, the American admits she’ll be entering unchartered territory with her first front row standing start.
“I’m excited!” Countryman said. “I haven’t started on pole for a standing start like this, so I’ll need to take some tips from maybe Alisha (Palmowski) as she’s going to start on pole. Learn as much as I can when I’m out there, come out of Turn 1 leading and then keep my head down.
“Even when I was out there in Qualifying, I could feel where I could push a little bit more. I’m a bit sad I didn’t maximise it at the time, but in the race I know what we can look forward to."