Relieved del Pino delighted to deliver best qualifying of the year in Spielberg

Bruno del Pino admitted his P4 Qualifying result in Spielberg came with a sense of relief after a difficult couple of rounds in Monte Carlo and Barcelona.

The MP Motorsport driver was in strong form throughout the 30-minute session, constantly fighting in and around the top 12.

However, on his final lap, del Pino pushed the limits in the final sector and rocketed up to fourth with a 1:20.937, a time that was just 0.197s off pole-sitter Nikola Tsolov.

QUALIFYING: Tsolov dominates to take pole in Spielberg

Speaking after the session, the Spaniard was happy with the result given that it followed two outings in Monte Carlo and Barcelona where he qualified in P25 and P20, respectively.

“I feel good,” started del Pino. “The last two qualifying's in Monaco and Barcelona haven't been the best, so this is a relief. I'm starting from the second row, and its good way to start the weekend.

“I thought I did a pretty good job throughout the session. I felt I under pushed a bit in sector three, but with the track limits on this track, you had to leave a gap, but I pushed a bit more on the last lap.

“Qualifying is really tight between all the drivers, it was six-tenths until P23, so I think MP did a good job from my side.”

Fourth place is both del Pino and MP’s best qualifying performance of the season, surpassing the Spaniard’s P5 in Sakhir and Tim Tramnitz’s fifth place from Melbourne.

While Tramnitz wound up down in P17 in Spielberg and Alessandro Giusti qualified in 11th, del Pino feels as a team they are performing at a good level.

READ MORE: Tsolov expecting close fight for Pole after topping Spielberg Practice

“Giusti and I managed to be in the top 12 today,” he continued. “Tim unluckily hasn't but he's been showing strong pace through the first five rounds, so for sure he will come back.

“He has done a good job in qualifying, but especially in race pace. The main goal is always to be in the top 12 with all three cars and from my side, I’m trying to maximise what I have in the car and what I have to do to be in the highest position possible.”

Del Pino revealed that after the disappointment of his home weekend in Barcelona where he did not score any points – finishing P12 in the Sprint Race and P17 in the Feature – he took a slight step back from racing, with passing his university exams taking priority.

However, the Spanish driver still found time to work on the simulator both at the factory and at home, with his targets set on bouncing back this weekend.

Looking ahead to both races, del Pino feels he is a strong position to challenge towards the front.

“The last two weeks have been quite challenging mentally for me,” said del Pino. “But it's a good recovery today, knowing that the last two weekends haven't' been positive.

PRACTICE: Tsolov leads Câmara in Red Flag-filled Spielberg session

“I knew there was a lot of pace in Monaco and Barcelona. From my side I've had pace all season, so it's a second top five this season.

“But I had a chance to disconnect and try to improve as much as possible looking towards these last five rounds and so far, we've been showing good form, but still two races to go.

“I feel good and I feel strong. Race pace has been there, we are getting there and it's a good way to show what we are capable of. The starting position is a great advantage, especially for Sunday. We are able to fight for points and hopefully a podium if we do all things great.”