Hamilton dominates Hungarian Grand Prix qualifying

2012 Hungarian Grand Prix qualifying

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Lewis Hamilton dominated qualifying for the Hungarian Grand Prix to take his third pole position at the track.

Q1

Bright, sunny conditions greeted teams at the start of qualifying with track temperatures already as high as 45C.

The Lotus pair led the times initially but Lewis Hamilton produced a repeat of his pace from practice, setting a string of fastest sectors to end up 0.9s clear of Raikkonen.

With the track clearly improving, everyone bar Hamilton returned to the track to set further times. Only the Lotus drivers joined him in not using the soft tyres, but no-one was able to beat Hamilton’s mark.

The Toro Rosso pair were among the first to return to the track. Jean-Eric Vergne briefly held fourth but team mate Daniel Ricciardo’s best effort was half a second off.

They returned to the pits before the end of the session and that left Ricciardo vulnerable. Red Bull, who had sent their drivers back out on soft tyres, brought them back in once it became clear their position was secure, despite Mark Webber and Sebastian Vettel falling to 16th and 17th.

Heikki Kovalainen briefly moved ahead of Kamui Kobayashi but the Sauber driver escaped the drop zone with his final lap, consigning Ricciardo to 18th.

Drivers eliminated in Q1

18Daniel RicciardoToro Rosso-Ferrari1’23.250
19Heikki KovalainenCaterham-Renault1’23.576
20Vitaly PetrovCaterham-Renault1’24.167
21Charles PicMarussia-Cosworth1’25.244
22Timo GlockMarussia-Cosworth1’25.476
23Pedro de la RosaHRT-Cosworth1’25.916
24Narain KarthikeyanHRT-Cosworth1’26.178

Q2

It was a repeat of Q1 for Hamilton in the second part of qualifying: leave the pits, reel off a sequence of laps no-one could beat, and return to the pits. His best lap of 1’21.060 was over half a second faster than anyone else when he set it and still more than three-tenths quicker once his rivals had done their final runs.

Both Williams drivers were outside the top ten to begin with but their final runs were enough to secure the passage of both cars into Q3. Senna reached the final ten for the first time this year by 18 thousandths of a second.

It came at the expense of Mark Webber. Despite having been quickest in the final practice session, Webber found little improvement towards the end of Q2.

Maldonado ended up third-quickest despite a grassy moment at the exit of turn seven. Michael Schumacher sped through the dust cloud left by the Williams and failed to improve his time, ending up 17th.

Drivers eliminated in Q2

11Mark WebberRed Bull-Renault1’21.715
12Paul di RestaForce India-Mercedes1’21.813
13Nico RosbergMercedes1’21.895
14Sergio PerezSauber-Ferrari1’21.895
15Kamui KobayashiSauber-Ferrari1’22.300
16Jean-Eric VergneToro Rosso-Ferrari1’22.380
17Michael SchumacherMercedes1’22.723

Q3

The track temperature had cooled slightly in Q2 but by Q3 it was back up to 45C. That and the dust from Maldonado’s moment in Q2 seemed to inhibit the top ten drivers’ attempts to improve.

Hamilton slid wide on the dust as he went into turn eight on his first effort but was able to continue and set another lap. Raikkonen briefly set the top time but Hamilton took it off him with ease, despite a more cautious run through the middle sector.

The likes of Vettel and the Ferraris did a single run at the end of the session. The Red Bull driver took second while Alonso edged his team mate by 0.056s.

Grosjean came closest to toppling Hamilton with his last run, yet even the Lotus driver fell short by over four tenths of a second. It was enough to pip Vettel for second, however.

Button improved to take fourth but the gap between him and Hamilton was over six tenths on a day when few could get close to the 2008 champion.

Top ten in Q3

1Lewis HamiltonMcLaren-Mercedes1’20.953
2Romain GrosjeanLotus-Renault1’21.366
3Sebastian VettelRed Bull-Renault1’21.416
4Jenson ButtonMcLaren-Mercedes1’21.583
5Kimi RaikkonenLotus-Renault1’21.730
6Fernando AlonsoFerrari1’21.844
7Felipe MassaFerrari1’21.900
8Pastor MaldonadoWilliams-Renault1’21.939
9Bruno SennaWilliams-Renault1’22.343
10Nico HulkenbergForce India-Mercedes1’22.847

2012 Hungarian Grand Prix

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Author information

Keith Collantine
Lifelong motor sport fan Keith set up RaceFans in 2005 - when it was originally called F1 Fanatic. Having previously worked as a motoring...

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126 comments on “Hamilton dominates Hungarian Grand Prix qualifying”

  1. its all going to begin here…

      1. @keithcollantine the comments page :P

    1. by the way i think Alonso win tomorrow…

  2. 7 drivers out of the top 10 were slower than their Q2 time.How’s that?

    1. I said in the article.

    2. Tyre saving

    3. They used used tyre.

      1. That and a searingly hot track also makes it a touch harder to go fast.

    4. I noticed that too — in fact six of the Q3 runners were slower than the Q2 cut-off. I am seriously beginning to think that some cars are going (at least partially) towards a “race setup” between Q2 and Q3; they’re not in parc fermé at that point, so it would be perfectly permissible. And with the greatest of respect for Keith, I just don’t believe that track temperature and a bit of dust account for this.

      1. @paul-a Parc ferme starts in Q1 and ends at the race start

        1. My bad — starts at leaving pit lane in Q1, thought it was Q3 (regs 34.1.) Thanks.

    5. tyre management… different car have different setup for privileging the race pace and instead of one lap pace (like ferrari)….very close race tomorrow…we will see

  3. Untouchable lap from Hamilton. If tomorrow is dry, Hamilton will win easily. but there’s forecast saying it would rain…

    1. He may win, but I doubt there will be anything wasy about it.

        1. wasy was cool, just no idea what it meant! sounded right though

    2. Its good to have this Hamilton back, the fight is on!

      1. Same Hamilton – faster Mclaren.

    3. Hamilton drives this circuit well, Canada being another of his best. But his luck seems really down this year, still not convinced he can convert this to a win!

      1. Well it is one of the harder tracks to lose.

        1. I know he should be in with a good chance as pole. But: poor start and first lap collision with debris, rain and the McLaren totally losing the plot, botched tyre swap, driving anywhere close to Maldonado – you name it, it’s possible!

          1. Its the same for anyone though.

    4. he has performed like this in hungary qualifying before, and then not won. also at the start of the year he was fast in qualifying and slower in race, so i am not sure the qualifying advantage will turn into a win. he is not one of the best at tyre management during a full race, and others may do better in the race tomorrow. i think grosjean could do really well tomorrow, lotus is always better in the race, and started 2nd means not being held up by others in the race.

      1. yeh he has dlkpioe he has 2 wins lol lol

  4. Mclaren seemingly back at the top in dry conditions (although Button’s form remains erratic). I just hope they continue to develop the car to maintain the momentum – preferably in small iterations, rather than with big packages every few races.

    Rain is the big potential stumbling block tomorrow, but hopefully they’ve learnt enough from the previous 2 races to get a better handle on getting heat into all types of tyre.

    Hoping for a HAM victory and ALO to have his first non-finish, to keep the championship close. I’d also like to see Lotus take the other podium spots!

    1. Me too; the guy deserves a break from all the dissapointments.

  5. Alonso for the win!

    1. William Brierty
      28th July 2012, 15:26

      Alonso is in what can only be described as the “combat zone” as Brundle calls it, and he’s on the dirty side of the grid, so he needs to be careful that he doesn’t end up in the fence let alone with the win. And I know someone’s gonna call this post “the fanciful ramblings of a Hamilton fan”, but stranger things have happened.

      1. we will see…we will see

      2. davidnotcoulthard
        28th July 2012, 16:47

        What do you mean by that? Japan ’08? Italy last year?

      3. nah, alonso wont win tomorrow, unless it rains, which is a possibility. Brundle is right. alonso is happy to be ahead of webber atleast, his nearest championship challenger. he will chalk up the points, but wont fight for the win. podium is a possibility.

    2. ALO will be happy with a top 5 finish.

      1. he said the same think in Malesia and Valencia…

        1. Yep and its true.

  6. I don’t get it, is there some genius behind Ferrari’s decision to run a single lap on a track where starting position is crucial?

    1. Well, they clearly trust the drivers to do the best lap on their first attempt. The 2nd lap will usually be slower to to slightly more degradation ont the tyre, plus having more fuel on board slows the car. At the end of the day a single timed lap at the end of the session is the time when the fastest time the car can do will be set. Ferrari didn’t make any mistakes today.

      1. well ham improved on 2nd lap im sure ferrari could of they are good with deg

    2. If you just have one set of fresh tyres…

    3. they only had 1 set of tyres left

    4. tyre management… different car have different setup for privileging the race pace and instead of one lap pace (like ferrari)….very close race tomorrow…we will see

  7. Hope it turns out to be a great Grand Prix. If it’s wet, it’s going to be very exciting. If it stays dry, then, I hope Grosjean gets to the first corner ahead of Hamilton… just to make it more interesting!

    1. We need rain for sure.

      1. No we dont you want rain because a certain car is the best with tyres in the wet last two quallys Alo pole in ger he would of probably came 2nd if we go by buttons pace if ham did’nt have a problem wouldov couldov shouldv tho dont work.look at malaysia we dont want the world champ decided on the weather even in the dry ferrari have an advantage over macca and red bull with the tyre’s

        1. You realise that the world champ is ALWAYS influenced by weather, right? “Dry” is a type of weather…

    2. I hope Grosjean gets to the first corner ahead of Hamilton…

      provided he doesn’t crash

      1. @maksutov well, he’d spice things up if he did crash anyway… so… :P

      2. That’s Lewis’ problem- he’s got Cowboy Romain beside him and Cowboy Seb behind him. Jenson would do well to hang back and watch for a corner or two…

        1. William Brierty
          28th July 2012, 15:29

          @Kenny +1

  8. Im a Hamilton fan and that was utter domination the only man who has done that is seb i mean in Q1 ham was fastest on prime’s lol no 1 beat it and Q3 Dominatoin.

    and i was extremely worried about the maldonado incident but just seen it on sky and theirs no way ham held mal up ham tucked in behind vettel so if anyone says ham should get a pen you are bitter and deluded.

    Also what happend to webber and button he was miles behind hamilton i dont rate webber he hasn’t got that x factor to challeng Alo Vet Ham over a season . he’s had 2 good wins but no other podiums just look at the last 2 races even with a grid drop in Ger he was 40 secs back he is not good enough .Great lap by Seb i dont like him that much but in qually he should be happy even though it’s big gap.And kimi say no more it’s now 7-4 to Grosjean put Alo Vet or Ham in that car theyd walk the champoinship its had good results but no win and it shows its fast car if Gro can get 2 nd on the grid surely that is the best car.Kimi is leading Gro but not by much and gro as been so raw with his decision making so Kimi needs to show he’s team leader he is on probably 5 time’s more than Gro

    1. he hasn’t got that x factor to challeng Alo Vet Ham over a season

      It’s a repeat of 2010, Webber surely had that x-factor in the beginning but then it suddenly disappeared. Maybe it’s in Helmut Marko’s pocket, or in Vettel’s car…

      1. exactly he cant sustain it it’s called bottle and to be fair he’s not bad but you can only say someone else should have that seat look at silverstone thats one of the luckiest wins ever he was no match for alo on pace untill last stint also hockenheim what a joke drive 40 secs down the road barcalona lol 11th place it’s like button they have good moments but in an out and out fight are not consistent look at button nevr had a pole at mclaren SHOCKING

        1. button hasnt had a pole, but has been a consistent driver, look at his points tally to hamilton 552 to 559, almost identical. i dont know if that makes button look good or hamilton bad lol.

          1. It just makes the team look like the Equalizer.

          2. i think “Hamilton bad”…given the fact that is quicker but collect less point..

        2. Some punctuation might help people take your point more seriously…

      2. Hasnt got the x factor over hamilton?

        Look at the stats. Webber has placed ahead of hamilton in almost two thirds of all starts in the past three seasons and has finished ahead in WDC points every year since Hams championship. Enough X?

    2. maybe vet or alo, but not ham, he would crack as he has done every season.

      1. Yeah. Well HAM is at least a match for Massa XD

  9. With their usual race pace I am fancying Grosjean for the win, but with the threat of rain nothing is certain.

    1. If he does not get into the turn one first he tends to get into trouble (crash, damage car etc).

    2. @vettel1 Yep. This is certainly their best shot at a victory, especially with Raikkonen starting 5th.

  10. Massa was pretty good today. He was 6/10ths quicker than Alonso on the medium tyres, beat him in q2 and was really close to him in q3. I’m pretty pleased Fernando got 6th as I thought it might end up a lot worse. I just hope tomorrow goes okay.

    1. I certainly hopes he keeps doing this kind of job more often now, its good to see its not a one car team all the time. The Ferrari really looked to be a fish on the dry a bit, its certain that here they are the 3-4th fastest car.

      1. This is what I wanted to see when Alonso first joined Ferrari: him & Massa being separated by small margins & I think Hungary was an ideal place to demonstrate that as Massa has historically gone quite well there. Rain is notably a vital factor for them in the race tomorrow as I see Alonso fully switching on damage limitation mode If the weather stays dry (hopefully!).

      2. so Alonso is dominating the championship with the 3-4th fastest car ??…finally a “Alonso Hater” admit it

    2. @steph Yeah I noticed that Massa did really well, it was good.

  11. Hoping the top 3 in the championship dont score points with Lewis and Kimi scoring highly, to make it an exciting second half to the season, lewis will win tomorow with another double lotus podium i think…

    1. Would be fine if Hamilton, Button, Kimi and Grosjean score and close it all up, agree

  12. i dont rate webber he hasn’t got that x factor

    he’s had 2 good wins but no other podiums…even with a grid drop in Ger he was 40 secs back he is not good enough

    I disagree, I think Webber is still very much in contention in the championship, however I do agree that I don’t think he’ll win in the end (that will be Alonso or Vettel in my opinion). In Germany he had a grid penalty, that is the reason why he was 40 seconds back; it wasn’t like he’d be challenging for a podium.

    1. lol max button started 5th or 6th in germany got a podium so your statement is not right ham got a podium with a grid drop in china lol webber started 18th in china last yr and came 3rs so no excuses this year when webber or vettel oare in traffic moreso with webber he cant overtake redbull not quick enough in straights

      1. @danclap – He wasn’t highly competitive throughout the weekend, and with how close the field is you can hardly suggest he should’ve got a podium.
        Last year he came from 18th to 3rd in one of the most dominant cars in history on a circuit where overtaking is relatively easy, so making comparisons to that is ridiculous.

  13. William Brierty
    28th July 2012, 15:19

    I am a Brit and I love Hamilton, so obviously, I’d love him to win, but I am sorry but I don’t think he will, because of the following reasons…
    1. Hamilton’s pole conversion rate is pitiful
    2. It may rain, and the McLaren has looked poor in the rain
    3. Grosjean is right next to him, who a) tends to have great race pace and b) gets great starts
    4. Hamilton’s starts recently have been poor
    5. The pole sitter for the last 4 years has not gone on to win
    Please reassure me somebody. Contradict me, tell me that my reasons focus on patterns rather than hard facts and thow that “past form doesn’t always tell the future” motto at me. It’d make me feel so much better.

    1. I’m not a Hamilton fan (almost hater actually) but I’ll tell you that Ham’s been so dominant and determined this weekend that it will be very hard for his competitors to surpass him, especially on such a difficult/impossible-overtaking track. Seat back, relax and expect another beautiful performance like the one in Canada. As for Grosjean, it’s more likely that with his antics at the start he spoils any charge from Button and Alonso coming from behind. There, hope you feel better :)

      1. If it rains though, that will be a chance by Mclaren to show not just the pitstops are fine now but also planning the race

      2. William Brierty
        28th July 2012, 15:58

        Great job, thanks, I feel much better now, although maybe next time you could cut the whole “Hamilton-hating” thing. Who do support by the way? Alonso or Vettel? Actually you’re a Hamilton-hater, so I suppose you’ll be cheering on eyebrow man tomorrow.

      3. he has been dominant in other years at this track pre race day and failed to convert. also practice and qualifying does not require tyre management.

        1. William Brierty
          28th July 2012, 18:13

          You really aren’t helping

    2. It’s natural to worry, but I feel you’re worrying about the wrong things. This is what I worry about:
      1. The start; because anything can happen at the start, and next to him is a man who has shown this year that he’s not afraid to bang wheels a little for position.
      2. The weather, the only point I really agree with. First, if it starts raining a lot of things can go wrong, like they did last year for Hamilton (spin + drive through + extra pit stop); and second, like you said, the McLaren has been poor in the wet, on occasion. Perhaps warm wet weather will suit them better.
      3. Long-run pace; it’s difficult to predict long-run pace ahead of Sunday, especially with a disrupted FP2, but Lotus have been extremely strong on occasion, while McLaren’s race pace has been reasonable.

      Hope you don’t feel terrible again now ;-) I’m not, though. I think at this point Hamilton is looking good for a strong result, maybe the win. And I wouldn’t be unhappy with a Grosjean win, as long as he’s not flanked, on the podium, by Vettel and Alonso with Hamilton enduring another tough afternoon…

      1. William Brierty
        28th July 2012, 18:11

        Yeap, I feel awful again, thanks.

    3. davidnotcoulthard
      28th July 2012, 16:52

      It may rain, and the McLaren has looked poor in the rain

      The polar opposite of last year’s Hungaroring GP, then! Time surely flies…

    4. I agree, Lewis might well lose this one.

      I personally think he will hit problems with tyre wear, especially if he has to defend against a very anxious to win Grosjean.

      Button may not have challenged for pole, but I expect him to be a factor in the race.

      1. William Brierty
        28th July 2012, 18:23

        Yeah, again, you aren’t helping. Come on, have some consideration for those among us that is under the illusion that Hamilton has the slightest chance of taking the championship this year.

    5. I’m not a Hamilton fan, but I think he’s got a good shot to win tomorrow. Here’s my reasoning:
      1. He’s been dominant all weekend. It’s not like he just barely got pole. He was fastest in FP1 and FP2, and was 2nd in FP3 (less than 0.1s behind Webber). He was fastest in Q1 (on the harder tyre) and took pole by over 4 tenths of a second.
      2. Since 2005, McLaren has won 5 of the 7 races in Hungary. They’ve got a car that’s well-suited for this track, it seems.
      3. Grosjean has been somewhat of a ‘win-it-or-bin-it’ driver. Of course he could pull off something spectacular, but I have a feeling he might squander another good qualifying position, like in Australia/Malaysia/Monaco. He can’t really be blamed for the incident in Australia, but I digress.
      4. Assuming Grosjean can’t get by Hamilton, who can? Vettel has struggled from time-to-time when he doesn’t start on pole, so I’m not sure that he could be a factor. Jenson’s been slower than Lewis all weekend, so I don’t think he could get up there and pass him. Beyond that, you’re talking about a driver coming from P5 or further back challenging for the win, which doesn’t seem likely for the Hungaroring. My money’s on Lewis.

  14. Vettel went off the track in his only timed Q3 lap:
    http://img145.imagevenue.com/img.php?image=481145635_out_122_183lo.jpg
    clearly by going wide there he gained an advantage.

    1. William Brierty
      28th July 2012, 15:33

      He’s on the artificial grass, so instead of gaining something looks like he lost time on exit. That’s probably what he was referring to in the press conference when he talked about the lap as being “messy”.

      1. I rather think he gained an advantage there. By going wide on that spot, you can keep alot more speed with you. Going on the grass does slow you back down, but it is not enough to offset the advantage gained.

        1. William Brierty
          28th July 2012, 15:44

          I disagree. More time can be earned at that particular corner by getting on the throttle quickly and seemlessly, rather than opening up the steering wheel early. And remember, he was on used tyres, there had been rain yesterday and its a very dusty track, so he’d have had very little grip and poor traction on the exit, and may have even needed to feather off the throttle slightly.

    2. I do believe he gained, but he’s not off track. I am not 100% certain of the rule, but he still has tyres on the rumble strip so technically I believe he is still considered to be on track. I don’t have a problem with his choice of line there.

      1. William Brierty
        28th July 2012, 18:16

        The FIA has clearly stated that the rumble strips AREN’T part of the track, so he was 100% off the track, but it was to his detriment, not an advantage.

        1. I stand corrected then, I was under the impression they were. Vettel has always pushed the track to its limits.

          No one is going to do something unless a lot of people complain or he consistently gains an advantage.

  15. I can really see this turning into a massive scrap between Vettel and Hamilton for the win.
    I can’t wait. I just hope Alonso retires; for 2 reasons: a: I don’t like him, and b: it’ll make the championship more interesting

    1. William Brierty
      28th July 2012, 15:36

      You’re forgetting Grosjean. It’s more likely to be a massive scrap between Grosjean and Hamilton.

      1. No, he’s gonna lose six places in start and then crash with Maldonado.

        1. William Brierty
          28th July 2012, 16:01

          What a beautifully well-balanced and intelligent response.

        2. or he will pass hamilton with a pass of the year, like he did at valencia

      2. You’re all forgetting Button.

        Anyone, Button hater or not, who writes of Jenson Button is a fool. Especially when he’s starting from the second row.

    2. Considering the Ferrari is about third or fourth in terms of speed, I think the Championship will be hard enough for Alonso to win without retiring.

      If he keeps finishing 5th or lower he wont be in the lead for very long.

      1. William Brierty
        28th July 2012, 18:20

        Ferrari spend $400 million on running its team every year, so if anyone’s going to win the development race, its Ferrari. And even then, Alonso only needs a very average second half of the season to win.

        1. The other top teams spend about the same. Perhaps not the most, but definitely not that far off!

        2. Red Bull spend a fair amount through the course of the year, and they have Adrian Newey leading the development team, so if anything I’d say Red Bull (and also McLaren) can keep up with or even surpass Ferrari’s development.

  16. Kieth what do you think about Vettel going wide? I a surprised you are so quiet about it though. You can make a few waves by making an article on it.

    1. What is there to say about it. He ran wide and lost time on the slippery artificial grass. He was over a tenth faster than Hamilton after S2 and lost 3 tenths in S3.

      Yeah, clearly an advantage….

      1. No he was able to take the corner faster. The stewards will check his telemetry and they will see that he came in with more throttle and left with more speed. The time elapsed after his braking point before the last corner to the finished line will show it.

        That last turn is pretty much a slingshot, and there is not that much wheelspin sor the astro turf covered concrete didn’t hinder him at all, he pretty much sailed over it.

        1. Michael Brown (@)
          28th July 2012, 16:58

          No, I don’t think so. First, the artificial grass is bumpy, and there’s marbles/dust, causing him to lose some speed. Also, he’s still turning, which will further reduce his speed.

          Considering this, we would have lost time. Leaving the track is fine as long as you don’t gain an advantage.

        2. No he was able to take the corner faster. The stewards will check his telemetry and they will see that he came in with more throttle and left with more speed. The time elapsed after his braking point before the last corner to the finished line will show it.

          What the hell are you on about. It’s already fact that Vettel LOST time in S3, and quite a considerable amount. Also, the stewards didn’t even take a look at Vettel’s indiscretion. So he clearly did NOT take the corner faster and the stewards agree with this fact.

          1. some people take events like last weeks overtake off the track, and then become philosophical on any off-track event. it is obvious he lost time, it is not a faster way around the track, maybe if he was side by side in the race with someone and somehow gained an advantage over them into the next turn, but not in this case, on a fast lap it slowed him.

        3. The stewards checked it and found he lost time.

          1. Well his time would be even slower if he had backed off to stay on course.. so indirectly at that moment in time it was to his advantage even though he was faster through the sector in Q2. To me, the stewards only gave him a let off.

    2. I don’t write articles to “make waves”.

      So I’m not going to pretend Vettel gained an advantage when he obviously didn’t just to generate a few clicks.

  17. What do you think guys, in the past on the start the poll sitter, the 3rd and 5th, went to be the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd after the first corner?

    1. Massa 2008 from 3 to 1…eat both Mclaren

  18. Yay! Lewis on pole with a 1:20.9. That’s exactly what I guessed.

  19. so it seems it is status quo with mclaren still fastest car of the field as they started the season, they have been consistently fastest overall all year, yet somehow they cant convert it in race wins (tyre management no doubt), and a ferrari is way ahead of them in championship points, and mark webber has 2 race wins. i wonder if hamilton will finally prove himself capable to win races consistently in a fastest car now, or if he will only win 1 of the next 10 like he did in the first half of the season.

    1. I doubt Mclaren are now the fastest.
      I think Lotus have one of the fastest car on the grid.
      One lap doesn’t mean anything.

    2. The team shipped away several strong results due to horrorshows in pitstops. Once they sorted that out the car became a midfield performer for a couple of races. It’s only since the last race that the upgrade came through.

      I would say of all the points grown away the team is guilty for 90% and Lewis maybe 10% (in Valencia)

      1. Ken (@myxomatosis)
        28th July 2012, 20:49

        Maldonado going off the track then veering back into Hamilton’s car was Hamilton’s fault?

  20. Am I the only one hoping for a McLaren 1-2 tomorrow regardless of who finishes first?

    I miss the Turkey, Canada 2010 days… it’s been too long.

    1. SK (@terminator)
      28th July 2012, 22:30

      Amen brother

  21. So in 2010 pole was like a 1:18.9
    Last year i think it was a 1:19.9
    Now its a 1:20.8

    So over 2 seconds slower (RB 2.5 slower since 2010, Mclaren only 1s)
    Its a pity that the constant banning of clever ideas are holding back the speed of how fast engineers could make the cars go.

  22. Well it was the dry session so many wanted in order to get a clear picture of the pecking order. McLaren, especially Lewis, looks formidable again and it seems Renault are now battling Red Bull for 2nd fastest. Ferrari need rain, reitrements or Alonso magic in order to get a result tomorrow.

  23. Hamilton/Grosjean will crash, button will lose places at the start, Vettel and Raikkonen to lead into turn 1 just watch tomorrow,kimi and seb will fight for the lead and as usual alonso will end up with another podium…

  24. I think/hope lewis will simply romp away into the sunset @ hungaroring today,seems to me as if he can switch on the hard tyres-and can run a pace on those, that the others have to use the softs to get. C`MON LEWIS!

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