United States – Qualifications: Rosberg takes pole effortlessly against Hamilton

The seventeenth qualifying session of the season begins under a radiant sun in Austin.

Q1: Sergio Perez is the first on track and already on soft tires, a sign that the Mexican is struggling on the Texan track. He sets the first reference time but is quickly overtaken by drivers on medium tires. Rosberg, Bottas, and then Hamilton take the lead, under 1:39.0. At the back, the fight is on between the Force India, Toro Rosso, Lotus, and Sauber teams to avoid being knocked out in Q1.

At the front, Rosberg grabs the best time. His teammate, trailing by two-tenths, reports on the radio that he has flat-spotted his medium tires. He comes into the pits. The Briton may need to go back out as Maldonado, on soft tires, climbs to 4th place, less than two-hundredths from the championship leader. Ricciardo goes out directly on soft tires but fails to better the Venezuelan. He falls short by six-tenths of Rosberg’s best time on mediums.

The final minutes see nearly all the drivers go back out, including Hamilton, who will secure his passage into Q2 with soft tires, which he does quite easily, with a six-tenths advantage over Massa and a second over Bottas. At the back, Grosjean, on a good lap, completely misses and exits right in Q1, while his teammate managed to climb to 8th place. Vergne and Gutierrez are the two drivers joining Vettel – who produced a lap just for formality – outside of Q2.

Eliminated in Q1: Vergne, Gutierrez, Vettel, and Grosjean.

Q2: Kvyat exits the pits, quickly followed by most drivers, including the Mercedes drivers eager to secure their place for Q3. Bottas is the first driver to set a benchmark time of 1:38.094. He is surpassed by Alonso by 8 hundredths and by Rosberg by one second. Hamilton falls short by two-tenths compared to his teammate. The two Mercedes are far ahead of the competition after this first round. The McLarens close it by setting the 4th and 5th fastest times.

The second salvo is launched by Pérez. The Mexican manages to temporarily climb into the top 10, but there are improvements behind him. Massa, in particular, who climbs to third place, over two-tenths behind Rosberg. Bottas takes fourth place. Rosberg, out for another lap, shatters his time and improves by eight-tenths. Perez is just 10th as the checkered flag falls. But Sutil slips in! The Sauber driver qualifies for Q3.

Eliminated in Q2: Maldonado, Pérez, Hülkenberg, and Kvyat.

Q3: Without delay, Ricciardo launches his Red Bull into the battle. He sets an initial time of 1:38.120, which is not really a benchmark. Quickly, Bottas improves by 1.3s. The Finnish driver’s time is only surpassed by the Mercedes, with Rosberg just under two-tenths ahead of Hamilton. The top 5 after this first attempt is Rosberg, Hamilton, Bottas, Massa, and Button. Sutil has not yet gone out.

Once again, Ricciardo will be the first to set a time in this second round. The Australian improves but must wait for the times of the other drivers. Rosberg seems to be on a cloud. He improves his time by two tenths and Hamilton can do nothing, he doesn’t even improve his time. Behind them, Bottas and Massa will occupy the second row.