Qualifications – United States: An atypical session offers a 3rd consecutive pole to Rosberg

Since the paddock arrived in Austin, the only topic of conversation has been Patricia, the name of the hurricane currently affecting mainly Mexico. Unfortunately, Texas wasn’t spared from the terribly difficult weather conditions: Free Practice 1 on Friday went ahead, but not Free Practice 2.

When the time for qualifying came on Saturday, the rain hadn’t stopped. Worse, it had even intensified. After multiple delays, the FIA had to finally face the facts: the qualifying sessions would take place on Sunday, the same day as the race, at 9 a.m. local time. The appointment was set. Despite persistent rain, albeit less intense than the previous day, Q1 was able to start. In cold conditions (only 16°C on the track), as unmanageable as they were problematic, rain tires were logically in use.

The weather was still uncertain. At Mercedes, they advised Lewis Hamilton to set a fast time immediately, in case the rain intensified later. For Romain Grosjean, there was no doubt: the conditions were on the edge. Kimi Räikkönen, on the other hand, complained about the lack of visibility. Real walls of water were rising with every car passing by. But the Formula 1 circus had started its show…

The rain was soon to claim its first victim, and it was Spanish: Carlos Sainz went off on a left-hand corner, climbing too high on the curb, and would hit the tire barrier quite violently. The session was over for him. Naturally, the red flag was swiftly waved by race control.

RED FLAG Carlos Sainz loses control & is into the gravel at Turn 4 #USGP #Quali pic.twitter.com/EHfouiSCGL

— Formula 1 (@F1) 25 Octobre 2015

Only twelve drivers (including Carlos Sainz) had set a time by then. Marcus Ericsson, 10th, was warned by his radio that the rain would intensify in the next few minutes. For all those who hadn’t set a timed lap, the aim was to get back into the fight as soon as possible…

Kimi Räikkönen was therefore leading an anxious pack. However, most of the field managed to improve their times. Some cars, such as Williams, Sauber, or Lotus, seemed uncomfortable with these particular conditions. Marcus Ericsson allowed himself a controlled slide that Sébastien Ogier wouldn’t have disowned. Despite a big drift, Daniel Ricciardo set the fastest time, ahead of the two Mercedes with two minutes remaining in Q1.

Even the experienced Sebastian Vettel had a scare: his Ferrari even touched the rails. The German returned to the pits and couldn’t improve his time, nearly getting eliminated in Q1 by the two Saubers. At the top of the standings, no one had stopped driving, fearing that Q2 might not take place. Daniel Ricciardo confirmed his fastest time and posed as a serious challenger to the Mercedes. Nico Rosberg was slightly ahead of Lewis Hamilton.

Eliminated in Q1: Ericsson, Nasr, Rossi, Stevens, and Sainz.

VETTEL to Ferrari: “Box, box, I touched the wall” #Quali #USGP #F1 pic.twitter.com/rXk1Yy6II7

— Formula 1 (@F1) 25 Octobre 2015

Q2 started under persistent rain, though far from the deluge announced in some radio communications. The conditions remained tricky, of course: Jenson Button and Nico Hülkenberg, both close to spinning out in sector 2, could certainly attest to that. The Ferraris were more than a second and a half behind the Mercedes: had the Scuderia set up their cars for race conditions (with settings more suited for dry than wet conditions) or were they genuinely struggling on this Texan track? The Ferrari was so unstable that Kimi Räikkönen spun out, again at the same corner of sector 2, though he was fortunately able to continue.

The same turn 10, in the second sector, was catching out many drivers, including Lewis Hamilton himself. Verstappen, Perez, Bottas, and again Vettel… The small mistakes were becoming more frequent as water continued to accumulate, despite the repeated passages of the cars. Daniil Kvyat even mentioned a dangerous track, while Sebastien Vettel spoke of conditions deserving a red flag.

Several minutes before the end of the session, the humidity had frozen the positions. Neither the two Lotus nor the two McLaren managed to get into the top 10. The disappointment was for Valtteri Bottas, only 12th, with a Williams that was decidedly unpredictable in the rain. Would Q3 be able to take place? The Safety Car came out to assess the conditions on site…

At the top of the timesheet, Nico Rosberg managed to edge out Lewis Hamilton by a mere tenth. The two Red Bulls of Ricciardo and Kvyat followed. Sebastian Vettel was 5th, Perez 6th, and Hülkenberg 7th. Max Verstappen was the last survivor.

Eliminated in Q2: Alonso, Bottas, Grosjean, Button, Maldonado.

Conditions worsening, lap times slower, so return to the pits. No #Q3 for us. pic.twitter.com/UFKrYNnY92

— Lotus F1 Team (@Lotus_F1Team) 25 Octobre 2015

The axe fell without surprise: faced with the noticeable deterioration of conditions, the start of Q3 was postponed by ten minutes. As the conditions still did not improve, with a race still scheduled in four hours, which is the minimum regulatory requirement by the FIA, a cancellation of Q3 became increasingly likely. At 10:04 am local time, the announcement was made: the FIA, wisely, canceled Q3.

It was therefore the order of Q2 that decided the starting grid. Nico Rosberg had done well to push until the end in Q2 and secured his third consecutive pole position. Lewis Hamilton, in 2nd, would have a third row with 100% Red Bull behind him. The Force Indias would start 5th and 6th, since Sebastian Vettel, with the 5th fastest time, would receive a 10-place penalty for an engine change as expected. The same sanction applied to Kimi Räikkönen.