Motorsport: Emphasis on qualifying for Brendon Hartley

Brendon Hartley during the Azerbaijan Formula One Grand Prix at Baku City Circuit. Photo / Getty Images

Kiwi racer Brendon Hartley is putting a lot of focus on qualifying this weekend as he prepares for the Spanish Grand Prix in Barcelona.

The Toro Rosso driver is fresh off earning his first championship point in Formula 1 a fortnight ago in Baku but will head to a track where results could be hard to come by.

"Barcelona is probably the track on the calendar that every single driver knows better than any other, which also makes it extremely challenging when it comes to trying to get any advantage over your teammate or the others drivers and teams," Hartley said.

"It's not just the actual testing that means we all know it well, because, from my time working in simulators for various teams, I know that the Catalunya track is used a lot in the sim. It's an enjoyable track to drive and offers a bit of everything. It is also tough physically, especially with the long right hand corners in particular putting a strain on the neck muscles."

Qualifying will be extremely important at this track because overtaking is not easy achieved. Hartley feels that is an area in his racing where he has made some real strides this season.

"So far this year, I've been relatively happy with my qualifying performance, especially compared to last year, when I had not yet developed an understanding of how to get the most out of the tyres," the 28-year-old said.

"Now, I feel like I'm understanding the car and tyres more and more and that's given me a lot more confidence going into qualifying sessions. It's one of the most fun parts of the weekend because all the fuel load comes off, the rubber goes down and that's when these cars really come alive. They're literally the quickest cars on earth and qualifying really highlights that. It's not often that you don't have a smile on your face with the amount of grip that we have and the lap times we're doing."

The Barcelona track is notoriously hard on tyres and Hartley will have to be conscious of getting the best out of his rubber this weekend, even managing tyre life during qualifying.

"Tyre management will be very important at this track because, even on a qualifying lap, you have to keep the rears alive for that last sector where you need the traction," he said

"You can easily destroy the rear tyres through that first part with all the high-speed corners but it's one of the challenges of getting the most out of the qualifying lap."

Hartley is on track for the first time this morning with two free practice sessions.