'We need a solution for yellow flags' - Grosjean

It was a good news, bad news qualifying session for Haas F1 in Russia, as drivers Kevin Magnussen and Romain Grosjean qualified 14th and 20th, respectively, at the Sochi Autodrom. While Magnussen was reasonably pleased and felt he'd extracted near the maximum possible from his car, Grosjean was left fuming after yet another run-in with yellow flags on a fast lap.

Magnussen will start 13th due to a five-place grid penalty being served by Toro Rosso's Carlos Sainz Jr., who qualified 11th. Grosjean will start 19th as 17th-place qualifier Stoffel Vandoorne of McLaren also serves a grid penalty.

Magnussen set the 15th-fastest time in Q1 with a lap of 1:36.408 to claw his way into Q2, but. Grosjean's struggle with the balance of his car continued, resulting in a 20th-place Q1 drive. Grosjean's effort was also thwarted by double yellow flags that waved on his final flying lap when Jolyon Palmer spun his Renault into the wall off Turn 4.

"I've been very unhappy with the car since yesterday morning. Something is just not working, and then today we had the yellow flags on my last lap while I was trying to improve," said Grosjean. "We need a solution for those yellow flags. Three races now we've had at least one Haas (car) out because we get a yellow flag on our last attempt, so that's a bit too much."

Magnussen was a little happier, but conceded, "As a team we're struggling a bit more this weekend than in the first races. I think P14 for me today was the best I could do. To be in that group is a good effort from our side. Hopefully, we can get through the first corner well and have a good race."