Hamilton takes first Pole at new Sochi track, Rosberg 2nd for yet another Mercedes front row lockout; Bottas impressive again to take 3rd in Qualifying.
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Less than a week after a devastating freak accident at rainy Suzuka left Marussia driver Jules Bianchi in a coma the Formula 1 circus made its way to Sochi, Russia for the inaugural Russian Grand Prix. With their injured comrade much on the minds of everyone in the paddock, Mercedes ace and Drivers’ Championship points leader Lewis Hamilton put the attention back on competition with the first-ever Pole at the Sochi track. His teammate and rival Nico Rosberg took 2nd to lock out the front row yet again for the Mercedes factory team and Williams’ Valtteri Bottas continued his breakout year to grab 3rd on the grid. The young Finn had been on a flier that may have eclipsed Rosberg’s time in Q3 but had a lurid slide at the very end of the lap that cost him that chance. The new Sochi circuit was quite green, as was to be expected, and tire degradation was far more moderate than at any of the other tracks so far this year. That should make tire strategy particularly interesting come Sunday, as some teams may chose to gamble on very long stints to cement or gain superior track position. The opening lap could also be eventful with Rosberg keen to reestablish the dominance that has deserted him the last few races and desperately trying to claw back points from Hamilton.
McLaren’s Jenson Button showed very good pace to run the 4th fastest lap, while teammate Kevin Magnussen came home P6 but will receive a 5-place penalty for a subsequent gearbox change. Russian national Daniil Kvyat had a dream quali for Torro Rosso to take P5, ahead of not just teammate Jean-Eric Vergne in 10th but also both of the senior team Red Bulls, which struggled with straight line speed. Daniel Ricciardo could only muster 7th but it was even worse for Sebastian Vettel who failed to advance out of Q2 and will start a lowly 11th on race day. Ferrari also had a disappointing Qualifying after an awful zero-point race last weekend in Japan. Fernando Alonso, whose F1 future is somehow now in doubt for next year, could only get as high as 8th and teammate Kimi Raikkonen was a mediocre 9th. Between his DNF at Suzuka, his suddenly uncertain status for next season and the accident to Bianchi, the normally cocky Spaniard has seemed subdued all weekend long. It’s not too likely in the uncompetitive F14 T chassis but here’s hoping the great former 2-time Champion can find some race pace come Sunday when the lights go out.
Team Marssusia prepared Jules Bianchi’s car for the race but will not use a replacement driver. The chassis, in which the Frenchman scored the team’s only World Championship points this past summer in Monaco, will remain in the garage in silent tribute to their fallen teammate.
Top 10 Qualifiers here:
| Pos | No | Driver | Team | Q1 | Q2 | Q3 | Laps |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 44 | Lewis Hamilton | Mercedes | 1:38.759 | 1:38.338 | 1:38.513 | 18 |
| 2 | 6 | Nico Rosberg | Mercedes | 1:39.076 | 1:38.606 | 1:38.713 | 18 |
| 3 | 77 | Valtteri Bottas | Williams-Mercedes | 1:39.125 | 1:38.971 | 1:38.920 | 23 |
| 4 | 22 | Jenson Button | McLaren-Mercedes | 1:39.560 | 1:39.381 | 1:39.121 | 22 |
| 5 | 26 | Daniil Kvyat | STR-Renault | 1:40.074 | 1:39.296 | 1:39.277 | 27 |
| 6 | 20 | Kevin Magnussen | McLaren-Mercedes | 1:39.735 | 1:39.022 | 1:39.629 | 21 |
| 7 | 3 | Daniel Ricciardo | Red Bull Racing-Renault | 1:40.519 | 1:39.666 | 1:39.635 | 21 |
| 8 | 14 | Fernando Alonso | Ferrari | 1:40.255 | 1:39.786 | 1:39.709 | 25 |
| 9 | 7 | Kimi Räikkönen | Ferrari | 1:40.098 | 1:39.838 | 1:39.771 | 26 |
| 10 | 25 | Jean-Eric Vergne | STR-Renault | 1:40.354 | 1:39.929 | 1:40.020 | 27 |
Complete Qualifying results available at Formula1.com.
Tomorrow’s inaugural Russian Grand Prix airs live beginning at 6:30 Eastern in the States on NBCSN.