Germany – Qualifying: Nico Rosberg wins by a landslide ahead of Lewis Hamilton!
Nico Rosberg will start tomorrow's German Grand Prix from pole position. He is ahead of Lewis Hamilton, the two Red Bulls and the two Ferraris, grouped together on the second and third rows of the grid. The German driver only had one chance to set a fast lap in Q3 due to an electronic problem, but he didn't hesitate to win by just over a tenth of a second over his team-mate.
The three practice sessions of the German Grand Prix were dominated by Mercedes and their two drivers, Nico Rosberg and Lewis Hamilton. The pole position should therefore not escape one of these two men, except in the case of a mechanical problem or changing weather conditions.
In this regard, even though the sky is overcast at Hockenheim, the rain should not disrupt this qualifying session. Lewis Hamilton avoided a penalty this morning for a pit exit deemed dangerous. However, his team received a fine. Romain Grosjean, on the other hand, was forced to change his gearbox and will receive a five-place grid penalty.
Q1 starts and it’s Pascal Wehrlein’s Manor that takes to the track first. But it’s his teammate, Rio Haryanto, who sets the first benchmark at 1:17.701. It takes over 5 minutes in this first part of the qualifying for the top drivers to come out on track.
FIRST TIME OF Q1:
HAR: 1:17.701#GermanGP #Quali 🇩🇪 pic.twitter.com/GffTTcmUT2
— Formula 1 (@F1) 30 juillet 2016
The two Mercedes are the only ones at the moment to go out on Soft tires. Despite this difference in tires, Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg position themselves at the front, three-tenths ahead of Daniel Ricciardo’s Red Bull and five-tenths ahead of Kimi Räikkönen’s Ferrari.
For the moment, the surprise is created by Pascal Wehrlein who is in 13th position with his Manor. Romain Grosjean, struggling with his Haas, is only 19th. After a very fast lap, the Frenchman climbs to 10th place, one second off Hamilton’s best time. Gutierrez does even better than his teammate by placing 8th. The track is improving and drivers ranked beyond 13th place are trying their luck. Alonso and Massa, 12th and 13th, have decided not to go back out.
In their last fast lap, Palmer and Sainz saved their spots to advance to Q2. Daniil Kvyat continues his descent into hell and fails to a very disappointing 19th place, behind a Manor…
The eliminations in Q1 are: Magnussen, Wehrlein, Kvyat, Haryanto, Nasr, and Ericsson.
In Q2, the Mercedes finally decide to put on Super Soft tires. Consequently, Hamilton sets the best time at 1:14.748, less than a tenth ahead of Nico Rosberg.
Behind the untouchable Silver Arrows, Red Bull dominates Ferrari thanks to Max Verstappen, who leads Kimi Räikkönen, Daniel Ricciardo, and Sebastian Vettel. These drivers seem almost assured of making it to Q3. However, it will be more challenging for the Williams and Force India teams, who are fighting between the 7th and 10th positions. Massa was hindered on his fast lap by Carlos Sainz’s Toro Rosso, who is likely to receive a penalty for not moving aside early enough in front of the Williams.
The speeds on this circuit are impressive, and it’s a Manor that achieves the highest top speed with 341 km/h at the end of the straight line!
SPEED TRAP: K-MAG hunting down those @ManorRacing boys 🚀#GermanGP #Quali 🇩🇪 pic.twitter.com/414jBnsVUm
— Formula 1 (@F1) 30 juillet 2016
With the exception of the top five, all the drivers return to the track. Button temporarily enters the Top 10, as does Guttierez. Alonso, who goes too wide and damages his floor, and Grosjean do not improve and will not participate in Q3. Massa and Bottas’s Williams reclaim their positions in the top ten. Ultimately, no surprises for this Q2.
The drivers eliminated in Q2 are: Gutierrez, Button, Sainz, Alonso, Grosjean, and Palmer
The Q3 takes place with single-seaters on Super Soft tires. Sebastian Vettel has a set of worn tires and encounters some difficulties keeping his car on track during his first fast lap.
Rosberg, very lively on his flying lap, decides to return to the pits without setting a time. He leaves Lewis Hamilton and Kimi Räikkönen to take the lead in the standings. But the Ferrari is beaten by a fully attacking Max Verstappen. Daniel Ricciardo is even faster, he beats Verstappen to place himself just over two-tenths behind Hamilton’s Mercedes!
A 1:14.726 for Daniel and 1:15.103 for Max put the Bulls in P2 and P3 with 5 minutes of Q3 to go… #GermanGP #F1 pic.twitter.com/hV0Qy84wvi
— Red Bull Racing (@redbullracing) 30 juillet 2016
For the moment, only the two Williams and Rosberg have not set a time. All three are back on track with 5 minutes remaining. It seems that an electronic problem was the cause of Rosberg’s return to the pits…
The German can’t afford any mistakes. He has only one flying lap to claim pole position and beat Hamilton. Under pressure, Rosberg makes no mistakes and beats the Briton by a significant tenth. Massa slips between the two Ferraris in 6th place.
Hamilton takes off for his final attempt. The pole position is up for grabs at this precise moment. Ahead in the first sector, behind in the second, he falls short by 107 thousandths of a second and hands the pole to an impressive Rosberg!
Ricciardo’s and Verstappen’s two Red Bulls are ahead of the Ferraris of Räikkönen and Vettel. Hülkenberg, Bottas, Pérez, and Massa complete the Top 10.
PROVISIONAL CLASSIFICATION – END OF QUALIFYING
ROS edges out HAM
Red Bulls edge out Ferraris#GermanGP #Quali pic.twitter.com/YueoVFY6Tt
— Formula 1 (@F1) 30 juillet 2016
