(Motorsport-Total.com) – Arvid Lindblad is just 19 years old, is driving his first season in Formula 1 – and still has no desire to tear himself apart after his crash in the second free practice for the Spanish Grand Prix. Especially since he gave the appropriate response on the track just one day later with 10th place in qualifying.
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The Racing Bulls driver lost control of his VCARB 03 on Friday in turn 13 of the new Madring and crashed into the track barrier. The right side of the car was so badly damaged that Lindblad’s workday was cut short.
Even more serious: Racing Bulls had to change the chassis for Saturday. As a result, Lindblad missed almost the entire third free practice and was only able to complete seven laps towards the end of the session.
Tsunoda soundly defeated in qualifying
So not the best conditions for qualifying. Nevertheless, the Brit with Swedish roots kept up with his teammate Yuki Tsunoda in Q1 – and took almost 0.9 seconds off him in Q2. While Tsunoda was eliminated, Lindblad advanced to Q3.
He does not want to say that his confidence suffered because of the accident. The bigger problem was rather the lost track time: “The bigger problem was simply that I practically didn’t drive in the third free practice. If I had been able to complete the entire FP3, in my opinion the accident wouldn’t have affected me that much.”
“But the reality was: I had the accident, then only drove two fast laps in the third free practice and didn’t really have the chance to feel comfortable again. That’s what hurt me.”
There was a second problem: Because Lindblad hardly got to drive, Racing Bulls also lacked the data basis to further develop the car’s setup. “The fact is, we missed quite a bit. I don’t want to say we lost two complete sessions for learning. But after FP2, because of the accident, we didn’t feel comfortable changing anything,” says Lindblad.
“And then we couldn’t really drive in FP3, so we didn’t want to change anything afterwards either. Basically, we only used FP1 for the setup. I’m still driving with the same setup we decided on after the first free practice. I’m pretty sure: If I hadn’t had this accident, the development up to qualifying would have been completely different and I would have been much more satisfied.”
He does not deny that he himself was the cause of this difficult situation. However, he does not want to be too hard on himself: “It is what it is. I can learn from it. I won’t beat myself up over an accident, because something like that is eventually unavoidable.”
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And then follows a remarkably confident statement from the rookie: “I have been constantly at the limit and incredibly fast this year. This is my tenth Q3 of the season, not counting the sprints. I am allowed to make mistakes. And I will learn from them.”
Lindblad: Statistics speak for his performances
In fact, Lindblad’s season so far suggests that the Madrid accident is more the exception than the rule. He has not had to retire from a Grand Prix early even once in 2026. Although he could not start in Montreal due to a clutch defect, there has been no classic retirement in a race so far.
In addition, there is a remarkable sporting streak: Lindblad scored points in seven of the last eight Grands Prix. He has reached Q3 nine times in a row now, and since the sprint in Silverstone, he has not been beaten in qualifying by any teammate.
That not only consistency but also speed is right, Lindblad impressively demonstrated just before his accident on Friday. Although his FP2 was cut short, he ended up 4th on the timesheet.
The obvious question: What would have been possible in qualifying without the crash? “I wouldn’t have become fourth today,” Lindblad says laughing. “After all, I can’t drive a second faster.”
Because while Racing Bulls apparently got particularly quick on the new Madring on Friday, the established top teams made significant progress overnight: “The top teams obviously took a step. Maybe our people just did a better job on the initial setup, so we were closer at the start.”
“That’s why we are now where we belong. Yesterday was something special. I think I was ahead of development, and the team was also a step ahead. But we don’t want to fool ourselves: We are not at P4 level. That’s why tomorrow we will try to get the maximum out of it. But P9 is – unless someone ahead of us retires – the best possible.”
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