Lotus F1 Team
Pastor Maldonado believes that an error on his final flying lap in Q2 cost him a shot at competing in the top 10 shootout during qualifying for the United States Grand Prix.
Maldonado was eighth quickest in Q1 but ran wide at Turn 19 and ended the second knockout session in 11th position.
However, the Venezuelan will start from 10th place as a result of Jenson Button's gearbox penalty.
"The car feels more solid and together than it has for the last few races which meant I was able to push more than usual," he said.
"We know we work better in the faster corners – just as we saw in Barcelona – and I think there is still more pace in the car. On my Q2 lap I made a small mistake in the second to last corner which would have been worth another tenth and then we’d have been in Q3.
"We’re well placed for tomorrow; we need to have a good strategy, stay relaxed and calm and then let’s fight for the points. I think we have a great chance to score and that will be the main focus."
Lotus team-mate Romain Grosjean ran wide on his hot lap in Q1 and will start from 17th place.
"The car was good this morning, I was enjoying driving it and I even said it was the best car I’ve driven for a while! Unfortunately, it didn’t feel the same when I went out for qualifying and it was a real struggle to find any pace – which we clearly didn’t find, given our qualifying position," he lamented.
