• Turkish Grand Prix - Qualifying

'The more I pushed, the more went wrong' - Schumacher

ESPNF1 Staff
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Michael Schumacher qualified eighth in Turkey © Getty Images
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Michael Schumacher was at a loss to explain his poor qualifying performance at the Turkish Grand Prix that will see him start from eighth on the grid in Sunday's race.

Schumacher was over a second off the pace of his Mercedes team-mate Nico Rosberg and failed to deliver on the promise the car had shown during practice.

"Understandably I am not happy at all with today's qualifying," he said. "It was just strange, it seemed that the more I pushed on my last lap, the more went wrong. I was at the limit of what I had in my hand but the car was just sliding around and therefore I never got into my rhythm. It's a real shame after this morning's promising session."

But Mercedes motorsport boss Norbert Haug reckons Schumacher can still feature towards the front of the field in Sunday's race.

"Michael did not get the perfect lap in Q3, after being second fastest during the morning session, but with a good start from his place on the fourth row, he can improve in the race."

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