How are you feeling after a strong performance in Monza where you moved through the field from ninth to fourth?

We knew going into Monza that it wasn’t our best track and it was a shame to lose the podium after the race with the penalty, but there are plenty of positives to take from the weekend. We’re going to a very different kind of track in Russia and so I really hope we can continue our form and start strong on Friday.

Christian praised the great job you did for the Team in Friday qualifying at Monza. How important is teamwork in such a tight championship battle such as this one?

It is very important we help each other out and try to get the most from each weekend for the Team, especially as we come towards the end of the season where there are less races to capitalise on.

You finished fourth at last year’s Russian Grand Prix. Is it a track you enjoy driving and do you expect it to continue favouring the Mercedes?

Mercedes have won every race at Sochi since 2014 so they’re the favourites this weekend. They’re definitely going to be hard to beat but like always we will give it our best. Sochi is a track I like because it is very technical, fast and fluid which I think makes qualifying quite exciting.

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