06/07/2013
NEWS STORY
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Ahead of today’s qualifying session, the air temperature is 24 degrees C, while the track temperature is 42 degrees.
Sebastian Vettel showed blistering pace this morning, the German demonstrating supreme confidence by coming out in the closing moments of the session and posting a time 0.676s quicker than his nearest rival, Nico Rosberg.
With Mark Webber third quickest, Red Bull is looking strong, Vettel, eager to capitalise on this and take his first (F1) win on home soil.
While Rosberg split the Red Bulls, Mercedes, despite a clear step forward in recent weeks, saw teammate Lewis Hamilton struggling. Whilst Rosberg suffered understeer his teammate was encountering major oversteer.
Indeed, a number of drivers are suffering handling problems the ‘revised’ Pirelli tyres seeming to have put some of the teams back a few paces.
Lotus, which has opted to drop its Device for the remainder of the weekend, is on the pace but will clearly be hoping for warmer temperatures, while Ferrari seems to have made a slight improvement on yesterday.
While Red Bull has the edge over Mercedes it is difficult to sense the form of the remainder of the field, the tyre saga seeming to have caused some teams to take a step forward and others a step back. Then again, we don’t know if this is a temporary blip or whether the status-quo of the first half of the season has been turned on its head.
One team that is still hurting is Williams. The Grove outfit, celebrating its 600th Grand Prix this weekend, is but a shadow of its former self and one can almost imagine the buzzards hovering overhead. Then again, Sauber is also looking to be on the edge of the precipice.
Tyre options are medium (prime) and soft (option), drop-off quite alarming as far as the option tyres are concerned. There are two DRS zone, the first on the main pit straight and the other between Turns 11 and 13.
Mercedes would dearly love pole here on home soil, but it will take an effort of almost superhuman proportions – or very, very, little fuel, to beat the mighty Red Bulls this afternoon.
Di Resta gets proceedings underway, the Scot eclipsed by his German teammate for much of the weekend thus far. He is subsequently joined by Bianchi and Chilton.
As di Resta begins his flying lap, more and more drivers head down the pitlane. Most, but not all, on the softer rubber.
Di Resta (prime) posts 1:41.226 while Bianchi crosses the line at 34.056.
Next time around di Resta posts a more sensible 32.911 but this is soon beaten by Maldonado and his 31.834. Moments later, Bottas goes second (31.836), ahead of Gutierrez, di Resta and Pic.
Track temperature has dropped by 4 degrees as clouds pass overhead.
Like his teammate, Sutil’s first lap is conservative (34.355), improving to 32.741 next time around. Bianchi posts 33.570 to go sixth.
As Rosberg begins his first flying lap, Sutil complains that his force India is “really oversteery”.
Ricciardo goes quickest in the first two sectors, finally crossing the line at 31.081 to go quickest, Rosberg going second with a 31.322. The German is on primes while the Toro Rosso driver is on options.
A 31.131 sees Hamilton (prime) go quickest, as the Ferraris and Raikkonen head down the pitlane… on softs. Alonso is told he’ll be doing three timed laps.
As Alonso goes quickest in S1, Button is told that a lot of drivers are suffering grip problems. Alonso maintains the pace, finally crossing the line at 30.709 to take the top spot.
Raikkonen (option) goes quickest in S1 but loses pace in S2, as Vettel, unseen, goes fourth overall with a 31.269. Raikkonen crosses the line at 30.676 to go quickest.
With Perez (soft) only managing 17th, Button is now on track, the only driver yet to post a time. The Englishman posts 31.181 to go sixth, just behind Massa.
With 1:45 on the clock, Perez and Bottas are in the drop zone with Maldonado and Gutierrez hovering.
Perez fails to improve on 32.062 (eighteenth) as Massa posts 30.547 to go quickest.
Bottas leapfrogs his Williams teammate thereby dropping him into the danger zone.
Perez posts 31.498 to go fourteenth, just behind Webber, as both Williams drivers fail to make the cut.
Massa is quickest ahead of Raikkonen, Alonso, Ricciardo, Hamilton, Hulkenberg, Button, Grosjean, Vettel and Sutil.
We lose Bottas, Maldonado, Pic, Bianchi, Van der Garde and Chilton.
Of the ‘top ten’ in Q1 all but Hamilton and Vettel were on options.
Vergne is first out for Q2, the session which tends to show the true pace of the runners and riders. As in Q1, di Resta is an early riser.
Vergne posts 31.285 with di Resta posting 31.258 moments later. All but the Red bulls and McLarens are on track, all are on options.
A 30.575 sees Raikkonen go quickest, Grosjean posting a 30.868 to make it a Lotus 1-2.
However, moments later Hamilton bangs in a 30.152 while Alonso goes third with a 30.671.
Rosberg goes quickest in S1, the Mercedes appearing as if on rails. The Silverstone winner crosses the line at 30.326 to go second, losing out to his teammate in S3.
With 6:20 on the clock, and the Red Bulls yet to appear (again!), Sutil and Perez are still in the drop zone.
The Red Bull duo leave the pits at 5:35, Vettel leading the way, while Perez, having posted PBs in all three sectors, fails to improve on fourteenth.
The Red Bull duo post similar times in S1, the German going quickest of all in S2. At the line Vettel posts 29.992 to go second while Webber posts 30.217 to go third.
Grosjean goes quickest in S1 and again in s2, the Frenchman finally crossing the line at 30.005 to go second and thereby dropping Vergne into the danger zone.
While Alonso is posting PBs, Massa goes quickest overall in S1. Alonso subsequently takes the top spot with a 29.962 only to be demoted when his Brazilian teammate breaks the timing beam at 29.825.
As Perez improves to tenth, Raikkonen goes quickest of all in S1. Hulkenberg goes eighth and demotes Button to ninth as Raikkonen goes second overall with a 29.852.
The big shock however, is that Rosberg, who had settled for his time, has dropped out of the top ten and therefore fails to make the cut, a disaster for Mercedes and the Silverstone winner.
A disaster also for Force India with both drivers failing to make the cut.
Quickest was Massa, ahead of Raikkonen, Alonso, Vettel, Grosjean, Hamilton, Webber, Ricciardo, Hulkenberg and Button.
We lose Rosberg, di Resta, Perez, Gutierrez, Sutil and Vergne.
Some might surprises there, not least the form of the Ferraris, the ludicrous mistake by Mercedes and the failure of Force India. Is this the first glimpse of what we can expect following the tyre review?
Kudos to Button for his effort, likewise Ricciardo and Hulkenberg.
All but Button and Hulkenberg take to the track for Q3, most using old option tyres. Not the Red Bull however, both of whom are on brand new softs.
Ricciardo returns to the pits having not posted a time, as do the Ferrari duo.
Raikkonen posts 29.970 but this is instantly beaten by Vettel’s 29.662. Webber goes third and Grosjean fourth. A 29.540 sees Hamilton go quickest having lost pace in S2.
As Button begins his flying lap, Alonso and Massa head down the pitlane, both on primes. The McLaren driver subsequently dives into the pits.
Before Webber comes out the team adjusts the pressures of his rear tyres.
With 1:30 on the clock, all ten drivers are on track.
“I’ll be surprised if we can beat the Ferraris,” says Button.
As Alonso posts 39.416 and Massa 41.824, Vettel posts a PB – but only a PB - in S1. By the second split he’s 0.035s up on Hamilton, crossing the line at 29.501 to take provisional pole. However, Hamilton, Webber and Grosjean are on hot laps.
Webber can only manage third (29.608) while Hamilton takes pole with a 29.398, the Englishman setting a blistering pace, particularly in S1.
While Button and Hulkenberg opt not to post times, the Ferrari duo do, Massa out-qualifying his stablemate.
A mixed day for Mercedes, a superb pole for Hamilton on a day that Mercedes made a massive strategic error in terms of his teammate. Could it have been an all silver Arrows front row… we’ll never know.
To sum up, Hamilton will start from pole tomorrow, ahead of Vettel, Webber, Raikkonen, Grosjean, Ricciardo, Massa, Alonso, Button and Hulkenberg.
Rosberg will start eleventh, ahead of di Resta, Perez, Gutierrez, Sutil, Vergne, Bottas, Maldonado, Pic, Bianchi, Van der Garde and Chilton.
Check out our Saturday gallery, here.