Tag Archives: Kimi Raikkonen

2015 F1 Grand Prix of Belgium — Qualifying results

The summer break is over and it’s time to get back to racing in Formula 1. And where better to resume the season than the legendary Spa-Francorchamps circuit? Today was the first time in nearly a month to see who had the speed and who would take pole for tomorrow’s Belgian Grand Prix. And the answer, much as it has been in the last 6 races, is…

Mercedes’ Hamilton picks up where he left off with 6th straight Pole, Rosberg 2nd fastest; Bottas boosts Williams with P3 in Qualifying

Photos courtesy GrandPrix247.com

Photos via GrandPrix247.com

Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton, the current Drivers’ Championship leader, came back from the summer break and his slow-paced Caribbean vacation just as fast as ever. In typical fashion, the Englishman wrung every ounce of performance out of his car at mythic Spa-Francorchamps on Saturday to grab his 6th consecutive pole position. That made it an astonishing 10 poles for Hamilton in 11 races so far in 2015. Possessing the fastest chassis by far and the fastest driver, the Mercedes factory team has now clinched pole in every race this season. Hamilton’s teammate and closest championship pursuer, German Nico Rosberg, was perhaps running slightly more downforce after his harrowing blown-tire shunt in Friday practice and took P2 to lock out the front row for the Silver Arrows yet again.

Williams got a nice lift after a string of lackluster pre-break results when young Finn Valtteri Bottas was able to secure P3 on the grid. It was a very good effort from Bottas, who surely must have been smarting after learning the news that Ferrari had re-signed the enigmatic and erratic Kimi Raikkonen through next year’s season despite all speculation to the contrary. Bottas’ Williams teammate, former Ferrari hand Felipe Massa, was not as quick in the same machinery and could muster no better than the 7th best time of the day. Lotus’ Romain Grosjean had a remarkably good performance to come home P4 for the troubled team, easily the surprise of the session. However, the Frenchman will still have to serve a 5-spot grid penalty for a gearbox change on Friday. His teammate, the much-maligned Pastor Maldonado, was also unusually strong with the eighth fastest time in Q3. Also stepping up his game was Force India’s Sergio Perez who grabbed an impressive 5th spot on the grid and really seemed to get the most out of his car on this tricky, high speed course.

At the other end of the spectrum Red Bull and Ferrari must have been extremely disappointed, with both teams getting only one car through to the final shootout in Q3. Daniel Ricciardo took P6 but his teammate Daniil Kvyat was bounced out in Q2 and will start P12 after finishing runner up in the last race at the Hungaroring. It was arguably even worse for Ferrari, with their race winner in Hungary, Sebastian Vettel, unable to do better than a P9 start at Spa and the star-crossed Raikonnen suffering what sounded like terminal transmission failure in Q2. The Finnish veteran, who was retained by Ferrari for next year despite all the prevailing omens, will have to fight his way up from 14th on the grid. 20-year-old Toro Rosso rookie Carlos Sainz grabbed the last spot in the top 10, outdoing his 17-year-old teammate, Max Verstappen (P15), who didn’t really push his car after some drive issues in Q2 because he will face a large grid penalty for engine changes anyway.

Top 10 Qualifiers for tomorrow’s Belgian Grand Prix:

POS. NO. DRIVER TEAM Q1 Q2 Q3 LAPS
1 44 LEWIS HAMILTON  MERCEDES 1:48.908 1:48.024 1:47.197 16
2 6 NICO ROSBERG  MERCEDES 1:48.923 1:47.955 1:47.655 17
3 77 VALTTERI  BOTTAS  WILLIAMS 1:49.026 1:49.044 1:48.537 19
4 8 ROMAIN GROSJEAN  LOTUS 1:49.353 1:48.981 1:48.561 17
5 11 SERGIO PEREZ  FORCE INDIA 1:49.006 1:48.792 1:48.599 16
6 3 DANIEL RICCIARDO  RED BULL RACING 1:49.664 1:49.042 1:48.639 17
7 19 FELIPE MASSA  WILLIAMS 1:49.688 1:48.806 1:48.685 15
8 13 PASTOR MALDONADO  LOTUS 1:49.568 1:48.956 1:48.754 17
9 5 SEBASTIAN VETTEL  FERRARI 1:49.264 1:48.761 1:48.825 17
10 55 CARLOS SAINZ  TORO ROSSO 1:49.109 1:49.065 1:49.771 1

Complete Qualifying results via Formula1.com.

Tomorrow’s Belgian Grand Prix will also see the debut of a refinement to the starting rules by banning team communication to the drivers as regards clutch bite point and other on-the-fly adjustments durning the warm up laps. That assumed lack of precision could make for a tricky and possibly dangerous start, as the drivers will have to figure out the perfect bite point themselves, which could lead to a stalled car in front of others rocketing forward or just a lurching start in general. Hopefully, despite the good intention of returning more control of the racing to the drivers, the FIA hasn’t gone two steps back on safety.

Tune in tomorrow to see how that tricky start shakes out and whether Mercedes can get back to dominating races the way they’ve dominated qualifying throughout the year. Who knows, maybe a wild card like Force India’s Sergio Perez will finally pull off a major upset on a track that seems to suit him? Find out how it all goes down live on NBC Sports Network here in the states starting at 8AM Eastern. Hope to see you then!

2015 F1 Grand Prix of Hungary — Results & aftermath

Vettel and Ferrari ascendent in Hungary; Kvyat & Ricciardo take 2nd & 3rd for Red Bull; Rosberg loses chance to pass Hamilton in the points late in wild race

Only in one of the wildest, most topsy-turvey Formula 1 races you will ever see would Sebastian Vettel’s masterful win for resurgent Ferrari seem like the secondary story of the day. But that’s how it felt on Sunday in Hungary in a Grand Prix featuring shunts, punctures, penalties and mechanical failures galore, as well as a remarkable 2-3 finish by Red Bull’s Daniil Kvyat and Daniel Ricciardo in their previously underwhelming RB11 chassis. It was easy to overlook the remarkable achievement of Vettel and his improved Prancing Horse scoring his first-ever win at the Hungaroring when even woeful McLaren managed to finally score double points in 2015. But the German former four-time World Champion stamped his authority on the race the moment the lights went out for the start, making a power move right on by pole-sitter Lewis Hamilton’s Mercedes along the outside going into Turn 1. Vettel’s teammate, beleaguered Finnish veteran Kimi Raikkonen, followed close behind the space Vettel had created and all at once both Ferarris had passed both Mercedes. That left Silver Arrows teammates Hamilton and Nico Rosberg duking it out for 3rd. And then, no doubt frustrated by his ragged start, Hamilton lost his composure. The English championship leader tried to shove his way by Rosberg but had to bail out when he got too close going into a turn, sending him skittering off track into the gravel. While he was never stuck and kept rolling, a gaggle of cars passed him as he extricated himself and unlucky Lewis found himself in P10 before the end of the first lap. That seemed to set the tone for Hamilton’s race, as he proceeded to bull his way around the the Hungaroring in a seemingly futile effort to make up by brute force all the ground he lost on that eventful first lap.

F1GPHungary2015-start

Meanwhile up at the front, the race settled into a false sense of calm that belied the even greater chaos yet to come, with Vettel & Raikkonen running 1-2 and Rosberg 3rd. But right around Lap 40 Raikonnen began to experience ERS issues and dropped several dozen horsepower. The continued bad luck for the Finn left him in the unfortunate position of “blocker” for teammate Vettel and it became inevitable that the rest of the contenders would swamp him, which they soon did. With potentially his best car of the year and badly needing a strong result to stay in Ferrari’s good graces Raikkonen instead was forced to retire on Lap 60. At least no one could say that it was Kimi’s fault this time but that probably won’t help him keep his seat.

Prior to Raikkonen’s dropping out there was an eventful Safety Car period initiated when the Force India of Nico Hulkenburg had front wing failure on Lap 43 and shot straight off into the tire barrier. Continue reading →

2015 F1 Grand Prix of Great Britain — Results & aftermath

With late rain at Slverstone Hamilton times it perfectly to hold off all comers; Rosberg settles for a forlorn 2nd place but Vettel grabs a fortuitous podium

All race weekend the weather at the famed Silverstone circuit had been absolutely perfect with plentiful sun and balmy temperatures. But with 16 laps remaining in the British Grand Prix the skies turned dark and rain began to spatter half of the track in a more typical display of English summer weather. That meant it was judgement time for the pit wall strategists, as well as the contenders for the win at the front of the race. Ferrari’s Kimi Raikonnen was the first to make the call to gamble on Intermediate wet tires on Lap 39 but it proved to be a wager made too soon and the Finn made no ground in mixed conditions. By Lap 43, however, the intensity of the precipitation picked up and Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton dove into pits to make the switch after several squirmingly slow laps. By the time he exited after his service, the skies opened up and Hamilton seized the opportunity, building a gap on his teammate Nico Rosberg, who had stayed out on dry tires and only pitted on Lap 45. It all broke right for the Englishman at that moment and the racing gods had smiled on Hamilton once again at his home Grand Prix. In that decisive moment, he had essentially won at Silverstone for the 3rd time, a very exclusive club. And so he marched home to a dominant win amidst the hearty cheers of his countrymen, the beneficiary of good timing and good luck. But then, luck is the residue of design and after blowing a sure win in Monaco it would be hard to argue he wasn’t owed one after all.

Photos courtesy GrandPrix247.com

Photos courtesy GrandPrix247.com

It was hardly Hamilton’s and Mercedes’ usual uncontested victory. Team Williams had a storming start to the race with both Felipe Massa and Valtteri Bottas overtaking Hamilton and Rosberg directly off the starting line. For a while it seemed as if Frank Williams’ legendary British team could hold off mighty Mercedes and pull the upset. But it wasn’t to be. With Bottas looking the faster of their drivers team Williams did not issue any team orders to have Massa cede the lead to his junior teammate and that seemed to enable Mercedes to keep close despite their unusual starting hiccup. So when the first round of stops came, Hamilton was ideally poised to leapfrog both of the Williams with a typically sterling Mercedes stop. And that was exactly how it played out. Hamilton had a blistering out lap and was able to come around ahead of both Massa and Rosberg after they pitted simultaneously a lap later, as well as Bottas a lap after that. Even worse for Williams, when the rains did come they stayed out too long on slicks while Ferrari called in Sebastian Vettel to change to Intermediates. While their early call with Raikonnen didn’t pay off, the call for Vettel did in spades. Suddenly, in a race in which the German’s Prancing Horse had been nowhere, Vettel was able to reel in several positions including his teammate and both Williams to practically steal the last step on the podium with a fortuitous P3. The unlucky guinea pig Raikonnen finished P8.

That left Williams asking what might have been and relegated Massa to P4 and Bottas to P5. They have got to be cursing the unwanted rain. But they may also be second-guessing their strategy calls earlier in the race and whether they should have let the racy Bottas scoot on by Massa and try to build a gap against Mercedes that might have held up amidst all the whether-related chaos. Continue reading →

2015 F1 Grand Prix of Austria — Results & aftermath

Rosberg shows toughness and grit with commanding win in Austria, Hamilton 2nd for Mercedes; Williams’ Massa a hard-fought P3

The question in Austria after Saturday’s bizarre Qualifying that saw first Lewis Hamilton spin and then Nico Rosberg gift back the Pole with a spin of his own was whether Rosberg could overcome that error and fight his teammate for the win on Sunday. From the very start of the race Rosberg put that line of query to bed by forcefully grabbing the lead from Hamilton, charging by his English rival into turn one of the Red Bull Ring. After a hairy crash later on that first lap that took out Kimi Raikkonen’s Ferrari and the McLaren of Fernado Alonso and resulted in a Safety Car for several laps (both drivers were thankfully uninjured), Rosberg re-seized the initiative upon the restart, blasting ahead on this track that seems to suit him and building a lead he would not relinquish. Hamilton was also hurt by his own mental error when he crossed the blend line coming out of the pits on Lap 36. Not only did he emerge behind Rosberg but the stewards assessed a 5-second time penalty on the English Championship leader, essentially dooming his chances of victory midway through the race. With the win, Rosberg closed the gap to Hamilton to a mere 10 championship points and perhaps proved that he is not quite as mentally fragile as he has appeared in the past.

Pics courtesy GrandPrix247.com

Pics courtesy GrandPrix247.com

The usual Mercedes dominance left the fight for the last podium position down to the resurgent Williams of Felipe Massa and the very competitive Ferrari of Sebastian Vettel. Continue reading →

2015 F1 Grand Prix of Austria — Qualifying results

Both Mercedes spin on final Quali lap but it’s Hamilton’s lucky Pole while Rosberg blows it for P2; Vettel another P3 for Ferrari

When Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton spun his Silver Arrow at the beginning of his final Quali lap in Turn 1 of the Red Bull Ring, he must have thought he’d thrown the Pole away. His archrival Nico Rosberg was ahead of him on a blistering lap unaffected by the local yellow flag that Hamilton’s off generated. But coming into the last corner looking like he would snatch the top spot away from his English teammate Rosberg had a spin of his own, spoiling his chance to start from P1 and ceding the Pole back to Hamilton. Hamilton does seem to struggle on the short, twisty, up and down Austrian circuit while Rosberg seems quite comfortable. But if history is any guide Hamilton rarely relinquishes the lead when he starts from the front. So again it could be that Rosberg has in essence lost the Grand Prix on Saturday, as the mentally fragile German seems to have a hard time winning from behind when the lights go out on Sunday.

Pics courtesy of GrandPrix247.com

Pics courtesy of GrandPrix247.com

Ferrari had bewilderingly mixed results, with Sebastian Vettel running behind the high-powered Mercedes duo and fast enough for P3 but Kimi Raikkonen strangely in the pits on a rapidly drying track as time ran out in Q1, thereby getting bounced out in the first round. The Finnish veteran’s status and uncertain future with the Prancing Horse for next year was definitely not helped by that perplexing turn of events. He’ll start a lowly P18 and have to fight through a host of backmarkers for any chance of points. Williams’ Felipe Massa, last year’s Austria Pole-sitter, was not quite as quick this Saturday and came home P4, with teammate Valtteri Bottas a decent P6. Force India’s Nico Hulkenberg, the impressive German racer who last week was part of the winning driver lineup for the victorious Porsche prototype at the 24 hours of Le Mans, converted that extra confidence into an impressive P5 (by contrast, his teammate Sergio Perez could do no better than P16).

17-year-old rookie Max Verstappen took P7 for Toro Rosso, Daniil Kvyat was P8 for the senior Red Bull team, Felipe Nasr had his first really good Quali in weeks with a solid P9 and Lotus’ Romain Grosjean got the last top 10 spot on the grid, although he did not turn a lap in Q3.

Both McLarens will start from the rear of the field because not only did they not make it out of Q1 but they also face a raft of massive grid spot and time penalties for engine change infractions. Red Bull’s Kvyat and Daniel Ricciardo have also burned through their engine component allotments early and they too will face grid penalties on Sunday.

Top 10 qualifiers for the Austrian GP:

POS. NO. DRIVER TEAM Q1 Q2 Q3 LAPS
1 44 LEWIS HAMILTON MERCEDES 1:12.218 1:09.062 1:08.455 30
2 6 NICO ROSBERG MERCEDES 1:10.976 1:08.634 1:08.655 31
3 5 SEBASTIAN VETTEL FERRARI 1:11.184 1:09.392 1:08.810 21
4 19 FELIPE MASSA WILLIAMS 1:11.830 1:09.719 1:09.192 27
5 27 NICO HULKENBERG FORCE INDIA 1:11.319 1:09.604 1:09.278 22
6 77 VALTTERI BOTTAS WILLIAMS 1:11.894 1:09.598 1:09.319 26
7 33 MAX VERSTAPPEN TORO ROSSO 1:11.307 1:09.631 1:09.612 28
8 26 DANIIL KVYAT RED BULL 1:12.092 1:10.187 1:09.694 32
9 12 FELIPE NASR SAUBER 1:12.001 1:09.652 1:09.713 29
10 8 ROMAIN GROSJEAN LOTUS 1:11.821 1:09.920 22

Complete Qualifying results available via Formula1.com.

Tomorrow’s Austrian Grand Prix airs live on NBC Sports at 8AM Eastern. With so many nominally fast cars starting from the rear of the field the action from the Red Bull Ring should be fast and frantic. The battle for dominance between Mercedes teammates at the front could well be equally hectic. Hope to see you then.

2015 F1 Grand Prix of Canada — Results & aftermath

Hamilton regains momentum in Canada with decisive win, Rosberg a non-threatening 2nd; Williams’ Bottas breaks through for P3

Pics courtesy GrandPrix247.com

Pics courtesy GrandPrix247.com

After a gut-wrenching defeat in Monaco, Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton righted the ship at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve in Montreal on Sunday with a wire-to-wire victory. Having earned an emphatic pole it seemed nothing was going to stop the reigning World Champion from holding off his charging rival and teammate Nico Rosberg. Come race day, nothing did. Rosberg was never able to mount a real threat and in the end both Silver Arrows sailed to a seemingly comfortable 1-2 finish with the rest of the field well behind. Hamilton’s win reestablished his dominance in the Mercedes team and built his points lead back up to 17 after Rosberg’s lucky 2-race victory streak. It was a much needed return to form that demonstrated not only Hamilton’s peerless skill as a racing driver but also his mental toughness in the face of adversity after the bizarre own-goal in Monaco.

F1GPCanada2015Raikkonenspin

For team Mercedes as whole, Sunday’s GP represented an ominous return to their untouchable speed and metronomic precision as a unit, particularly when compared with Ferrari’s stumbles this past weekend. After starting 3rd with an outside shot at victory, Kimi Raikkonen threw away a probable podium for the Prancing Horse with an unforced spin in the hairpin after his first stop for tires. That enabled his fellow Finn, the excellent Valtteri Bottas, to snatch 3rd and hold off Raikkonen for the position until the end of the race, earning team Williams its first podium of the season. On the other side of the Ferrari garage, Sebastian Vettel started from 18th on the grid with a poor Quali due to mechanical issues and a self-inflicted 5-spot grid penalty for passing under the red flag in rainy practice. But Vettel had a storming drive, slicing his way through the field to finish a remarkable 5th. His outstanding 2015 Montreal effort should be played as Exhibit A whenever someone whinges about how you can’t pass in Formula 1. Exhibit B could be Bottas’ Williams teammate Felipe Massa. Massa also started way back in the pack in 15th after technical problems in Quali. Yet the veteran Brazilian managed to fight his way up to 6th with another gutsy, aggressive effort from a savvy pro. So if the battle for the win seemed like a fait accompli, the fight for points behind the 1-2 slots was a wild ride all race long. Continue reading →

2015 F1 Grand Prix of Canada — Qualifying results

Hamilton regains mojo after Monaco disaster, claims Pole in Canada; Rosberg just behind in P2 and Raikonnen flies flag for Ferrari in 3rd

The boys were back at it in Quebec for Qualifying two weeks after the bizarre and memorable Monaco Grand Prix. With heavy rain washing out a lot of Friday practice time, there wasn’t much dry prep for the drivers to show their true speed until this very sunny Saturday in Montreal. But if there were any doubts about Lewis Hamilton’s state of mind after the incredibly disappointing end to his dreams of victory in Monte Carlo the Englishman appeared to lay them to rest with the fastest lap in Q3, claiming Pole for Sunday’s race. It was the 44th of his career, perfectly matching the number on his Mercedes Silver Arrow. Putting behind him the inexplicable decision to pit late for fresh tires in Monaco that essentially handed his teammate Nico Rosberg the victory, the reigning World Champion has so far been the class of the field in Canada. And as fired up as he his to taste victory and wash away the last race’s bitter taste he should be very hard to beat come race day. Hamilton’s renewed dominance left Rosberg the one grumbling about tire strategy, as he questioned the Mercedes pit wall’s solutions for finding more grip in the Super Soft tires in the dying moments of Q3. In truth, he wound up only a little more than .3 behind Hamilton. But if he doesn’t manage to get by his nemesis early on Sunday Rosberg knows that his lucky two-race victory streak could be over.

With Sebastian Vettel’s qualifying coming to a stunning end in Q1 due to power-sapping electrical gremlins, it was left to Kimi Raikonnen to fly the flag for Ferrari. The Finn responded with his best effort of the year and grabbed P3, only .3 behind Rosberg, where he should be able to fight for a podium or pick up something even better if the Mercedes’ duo take each other out. His position for good points certainly looks more favorable than teammate Vettel’s, who will have to battle his way to the front from way back in 16th on the grid. Williams’ Valtteri Bottas rebounded from his dreadful weekend in Monaco to take P4 and the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve looks well suited to the FW37’s pure speed. However, Bottas’ teammate Felipe Massa did not get the chance to make use of that advantage, as he too was bounced in Q1 with power plant woes.

Team Lotus looks to be making genuine strides after six race weekends with Romain Grojean and Pastor Maldonado P5 and P6 respectively. Now it remains to be seen if they can get a break from the woeful luck that has plagued them in 2015 and actually finish both cars in the points. Continue reading →

F1 Grand Prix of Bahrain — Results & aftermath

In desert thriller Hamilton holds off charging Raikkonen for 4th straight win; Rosberg has late off under fire from Kimi, settles for 3rd

In a thrilling battle between Mercedes and hard charging Ferrari, Lewis Hamilton was able to come home for the win in Bahrain even as his breaks began to fail, his fourth straight victory to start the season and an astounding 10th Grand Prix win from the last 11 races. The laps ran out before Kimi Raikkonen’s onrushing Ferrari could catch Hamilton’s Silver Arrow and the Finnish former champ had to settle for 2nd, albeit his first podium since returning to the Scuderia last year. The Iceman had an excellent race and once again it seemed that the strategists on the pit wall for Ferrari somewhat outsmarted Mercedes. Ferrari split their tire strategy between Sebastian Vettel and Raikkonen, and Kimi was able to do a long, very effective middle stint on the harder medium tires. That enabled him to finish on the softer, faster options and take the fight to the two Mercedes in front who were, like Vettel, both on the harder compound. When Rosberg had brake woes of his own while being hounded by the Iceman on the penultimate lap and went skidding off track, Raikkonen was able to pounce. He wrested 2nd place from the German contender and brought joy to the hearts of all of those who love the famed Prancing Horse of Maranello even if he didn’t have the time to really have a go at Hamilton for the win.

GP BAHRAIN F1/2015

Kimi’s teammate Sebastian Vettel had a bit of a ragged race and struggled to keep his SF15-T securely under him throughout. In the end the German former 4-time World Champion was forced to make an extra pit stop for a new front wing after damaging his original by running wide through gravel and the rumble strips while dicing with a fired up Rosberg. That consigned Vettel to battling it out with Williams’ Valtteri Bottas for the rest of his run and he was unable to pass the talented Finnish up-and-comer. Bottas held on for an excellent 4th for his and Williams’ best placing of the year and Vettel had to settle for what must have seemed a disappointing P5 after making the podium in the first three Grand Prix.

Daniel Ricciardo drove a solid race to boost struggling team Red Bull’s morale and grab a solid 6th place. But characteristic of their season, even that strong points run was not without some bad news, as Ricciardo’s engine expired in rather spectacular fashion while taking the checkered flag. Continue reading →

F1 Grand Prix of Bahrain — Qualifying results

Hamilton’s Mercedes still tops the time sheets but Ferrari for real and gaining as Vettel out-qualifies Rosberg again

For a moment during Q2 in Bahrain on Saturday it appeared that Mercedes was sandbagging the field, holding something back only to blow everyone away and again prove their untouchable dominance. But while Lewis Hamilton ‘s Silver Arrow remained the car and driver to beat, claiming his remarkable 4th straight Pole to start the season, Ferrari proved that they are genuinely up for the fight with Sebastian Vettel outpacing Hamilton’s teammate Nico Rosberg to seize 2nd on the grid for Sunday’s race. After last week’s excuse-making whinging during the post race press conference for his second best performance respective to his dominant teammate and rival, Rosberg must’ve been absolutely muttering to himself after Q3. Because not only will he have to deal with Vettel in front of him but he will likely find himself harassed from behind by the other Prancing Horse of Kimi Raikkonen, who took P4 and seems to have found his good form again in this year’s vastly improved model. One thing’s for certain: the opening lap tomorrow should be very interesting at the least and perhaps even completely fraught and frantic as those four blokes jockey for an edge. But somehow I reckon Hamilton will sail away from the mayhem behind him and the others will be left to pick up the positions from second on down. That is if Vettel doesn’t shove the Englishman straight off the track on the front straight.

Pics courtesy GrandPrix247.com

Pics courtesy GrandPrix247.com

Williams again showed decent Qualifying pace but it remains to be seen if they can manage their tires well enough in a Grand Prix to return to the podium after their terrific 2014 season. Valtteri Bottas drove an excellent Q3 fast lap to pip teammate Felipe Massa for P5 by less than half a second. Daniel Ricciardo gave Red Bull some hope after teammate Daniil Kvyat was bounced out of Q1 with power plant gremlins. The Aussie ace was able to grab P7 with a gutsy fast lap that was just an eyelash behind Massa. Likewise, Nico Hulkenberg broke through for troubled Force India for the first Top 10 starting position for the team this year: the excellent German driver will start P8 on Sunday. Rookie Carlos Sainz out-qualified his 17-year-old teammate Max Verstappen in P9 and Romain Grosjean grabbed P10 for up-and-down Lotus.

McLaren had a Jekyll and Hyde weekend with Fernando Alonso’s Honda-powered MP4-30 showing dynamic improvement from the beginning of the season to come home P14. But Jenson Button’s car was plagued by electronic issues throughout Friday practice and they bit him again  today when he failed to complete a qualifying lap. The English former champion will start dead last and hope he can fight his way through the field and at least finish the race. Finally, Sauber’s Cinderella start may be about to strike midnight, as Felipe Nasr and Marcus Ericsson could do no better than P12 and P13. But that’s Formula 1 — if you’re not improving race to race you’re going backwards.

Top 10 Qualifiers for the Bahrain Grand Prix:

Pos No Driver Team Q1 Q2 Q3 Laps
1 44 Lewis Hamilton Mercedes 1:33.928 1:32.669 1:32.571 16
2 5 Sebastian Vettel Ferrari 1:34.919 1:33.623 1:32.982 12
3 6 Nico Rosberg Mercedes 1:34.398 1:33.878 1:33.129 16
4 7 Kimi Raikkonen Ferrari 1:34.568 1:33.540 1:33.227 15
5 77 Valtteri Bottas Williams 1:34.161 1:33.897 1:33.381 16
6 19 Felipe Massa Williams 1:34.488 1:33.551 1:33.744 16
7 3 Daniel Ricciardo Red Bull Racing 1:34.691 1:34.403 1:33.832 15
8 27 Nico Hulkenberg Force India 1:35.653 1:34.613 1:34.450 15
9 55 Carlos Sainz Toro Rosso 1:35.371 1:34.641 1:34.462 18
10 8 Romain Grosjean Lotus 1:35.007 1:34.123 1:34.484 20

 

Complete Qualifying results available via Formula1.com.

Tomorrow’s day-into-night race in the desert at Bahrain International Circuit begins at a very civilized 11AM here on the East Coast of the US and can be seen live on NBCSN. Ferrari is getting closer to be sure but do they really have the race pace to grab another win over King Lewis & Mercedes and pull the upset like Vettel did in Malaysia? Well worth finding out tomorrow so I hope to see you then!