Rosberg beats Hamilton to pole by narrow margin

2014 Canadian Grand Prix qualifying

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Nico Rosberg prevailed in a tight battle with team mate Lewis Hamilton to claim pole position for the Canadian Grand Prix.

There was no repeat of the controversial circumstance of qualifying in Monaco as Rosberg edged the other Mercedes by less than a tenth of a second.

Q1

Hamilton and Rosberg exchanged fastest times at the beginning of Q1, until Hamilton found seven-tenths of a second with his final effort to end the session well clear of Rosberg. The pair were eventually split by Kevin Magnussen, as the McLaren driver used a set of super-soft tyres to ensure his passage to Q2.

Behind them seven of the eighth Mercedes-powered cars filled the top seven places, with Daniil Kvyat’s Toro Rosso the highest-placed non-Mercedes car.

However the eighth Mercedes-engined car, belonging to Sergio Perez, nearly didn’t make the cut for Q2. He ended the session 16th after spinning at turn eight.

He was in good company, as several drivers were caught out by the low-grip track, including Hamilton who went across the turn one run-off on his first lap. However Marcus Ericsson was the only driver to hit the wall, bringing out the red flags with 16 seconds remaining.

That meant none of the other drivers could complete their laps. But Pastor Maldonado’s session was already over as Lotus had advised him to pull over in the final moments. The Marussia pair were out too, Jules Bianchi unable to do a second run due to a problem with his car.

Drivers eliminated in Q1

17Pastor MaldonadoLotus-Renault1’18.329
18Max ChiltonMarussia-Ferrari1’18.348
19Jules BianchiMarussia-Ferrari1’18.359
20Kamui KobayashiCaterham-Renault1’19.278
21Marcus EricssonCaterham-Renault1’19.820
22Esteban GutierrezSauber-Ferrari

Q2

The Williams drivers showed they had the pace to challenge the Mercedes on the super-soft tyre in Q2 as Felipe Massa headed the times to begin with.

But when the Mercedes drivers took to the track for their final runs they bumped the Williams back to third place, Hamilton leading Rosberg by over two tenths of a second.

Sebastian Vettel was languishing outside of the top ten before the final runs, but a clean final lap carried him through into Q3.

But with less than a tenth of a second covering Jenson Button in eighth to Magnussen four places behind him, the margins were incredibly fine. Nico Hulkenberg missed the final ten by less than five hundredths of a second, and was eliminated along with the other Force India of Sergio Perez.

Drivers eliminated in Q2

11Nico HulkenbergForce India-Mercedes1’16.300
12Kevin MagnussenMcLaren-Mercedes1’16.310
13Sergio PerezForce India-Mercedes1’16.472
14Romain GrosjeanLotus-Renault1’16.687
15Daniil KvyatToro Rosso-Renault1’16.713
16Adrian SutilSauber-Ferrari1’17.314

Q3

Hamilton flew through the first two sectors on his first run in Q3, lighting up the timing screens with the fastest times.

But he began to close on a Red Bull towards the end of his lap and crossed the line slower than Rosberg – by less than a tenth of a second. “Just that last sector with traffic by the look of it,” said race engineer Peter Bonnington.

The Williams drivers were next, followed by the two Red Bulls and Fernando Alonso’s Ferrari. Kimi Raikkonen then put his car eighth after single run in the final minutes of the session.

As in Monaco Rosberg was the first of the two Mercedes drivers to set a time but this time it was a clean lap. Not far behind him Hamilton set a new fastest time in the first sector but Rosberg responded in the second.

Hamilton locked his front-right wheel at turn eight and this proved costly – his middle sector time was slower than Rosberg and that made the difference at the finishing line. Rosberg set a 1’14.874 and Hamilton was less than a tenth of a second slower.

But behind them it was even closer – Sebastian Vettel claimed third place with just 0.041s covering him, the two Williams drivers, and Daniel Ricciardo.

Top ten in Q3

1Nico RosbergMercedes1’14.874
2Lewis HamiltonMercedes1’14.953
3Sebastian VettelRed Bull-Renault1’15.548
4Valtteri BottasWilliams-Mercedes1’15.550
5Felipe MassaWilliams-Mercedes1’15.578
6Daniel RicciardoRed Bull-Renault1’15.589
7Fernando AlonsoFerrari1’15.814
8Jean-Eric VergneToro Rosso-Renault1’16.162
9Jenson ButtonMcLaren-Mercedes1’16.182
10Kimi RaikkonenFerrari1’16.214

2014 Canadian Grand Prix

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Image © Daimler/Hoch Zwei

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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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137 comments on “Rosberg beats Hamilton to pole by narrow margin”

  1. So many people got their prediction wrong :P

    1. Although my predictions got wrong and looking at current grid, I dont have high hopes of scoring more points but I’m really happy with the way grid has unfolded. Hoping for a cracker of a race tomorrow. :)

    2. me 2 :(

    3. Yep, me too..but I’ll take it. Go Nico!

    4. Wrong driver, but only 0.002 seconds away from the correct time. If only there was a point for that…

  2. Hamilton’s face :D :D :D

    1. lol to ham’s face

  3. Didn’t see the sector times, but I’m sitting in the stands at turn 2 right now. Lewis made a big mistake. Looked like the lap was lost there.

  4. I am shocked. Rosberg proved that it is possible to beat Hamilton. Amazing.
    I wish Ferrari will not finish tomorrow with both cars.
    Congrats to Red Bull. They really work on track.

    1. I wish Ferrari will not finish tomorrow with both cars.

      Don’t see why.

      1. It is a mixed feeling: I hate this team for what they didn’t do in the last several years. On the other hand, I am a huge fan of Alonso and Raikkonen.
        There is no logic. But it is how it is.

        1. I’m in the same boat.. Love Alonso and Kimi.. but can’t stand Ferrari for being such failures to deliver a decent car

  5. Hamilton has been poor recently, he should have demolished Rosberg today and it’s not happening. There’s nothing between these two speed wise, Rosberg has got to be favourite for the title surely.

    1. Fully agree, Hamilton’s definitely not as strong over one lap as Rosberg. I don’t think Hamilton’s beat Rosberg once in the dry this year ? He’s Having an amazing and yet really poor year. Amazing because of the car, but extremely poor because he simply doesn’t have the pace.

      1. Just goes to show how exceptional the pensioner Michael Schumacher was in 2012. Mercedes thought they were getting a driving God in Lewis Hamilton when in reality they could have got an equally fast driver for much less money. Surely Hamilton’s wages need looking at in the future??

      2. How has Hamilton been poor of late? His form has been incredible! The only reason Nico is even close to Hamilton at the moment is because a mechanical error wiped Hamilton out of the Australian Grand Prix (of which he was pole). Following on from that race, Hamilton won four races on the trot; only one of which he wasn’t on pole for. Then we had Monaco which saw Hamilton on course to beat Nico’s pole lap before the Q3 incident and then a race where overtaking is incredibly hard between two cars of equal performance. And now Canada, where the margin between the two is so stupidly marginal so as to either one could have feasibly taken it.

        This is not the track record of a ‘poor’ driver. My money’s still on Hamilton to win the grand prix tomorrow; his form would suggest that in a straight race, he’s still the one to bet on.

        1. Lap 3 DRS.

      3. extremely poor because he simply doesn’t have the pace.

        Honestly? Hamilton does indeed have the pace, however he was unable to get a clean lap together today.

        1. Call it what you will, but hes not on pole. Its made worse by the fact its a track he should have easily beat Rosberg at as the “Canada master”. Ive said he’s having an amazing season, but his pace just isn’t up to Rosbergs. He can’t always count on the rain to help him.

          1. He shouldn’t easily beat Rosberg because they drive the same car.
            He lost on Q3 by a small margin. But still looks faster.

            Tomorrow is another day.
            Tomorrow we will see how “of the pace he is”. For the moment it’s just you talking about a driver you dislike. And with this nobody cares.

          2. @f190 the problem with some of this short sighted analysis you portray on Hamilton only shows is hate. Hamilton has beaten Rosberg all weekend so far except to poll by a slight margin which he also actually did in bahrain. On another note rosberg is scoring Ham’s data all the time to catch up then you come and claim he is faster. If it takes Rosberg to Q3 to beat ham by less than a tenth of a seconds then……Let tomorrow speak

          3. @sigwa

            I don’t hate any of the drivers. On a personal level I much prefer Hamilton over Rosberg. the reasons you list dont matter. It doesn’t matter how Rosberg beats him, the fact is it is happening. Is Hamilton slow ? No. Is he quicker than Rosberg ? on what ive seen this season i’d also say no. I admit theres extremely little between the two, but the facts dont lie and so far Rosberg has the edge, especially in dry qualifying.

      4. Wow. In Australia, it was always about being the last man across the line and Rosberg threw it away. Then in Malaysia, Hamilton destroyed Rosberg. In Bahrain they were close but overall Nico was the quicker man. In China Nico probably would have been closer in qualifying with working telemetary but there is no way he would have taken pole. In Spain they were very closely matched only this time Hamilton was faster. In Monaco Lewis was faster but Nico did a better job on his first lap and lucked into a pole. Then in Canada they were very close with both of them making mistakes on their final laps. I can’t even pick between them. And before you say it, wet sessions do count and probably show which driver has more pace.

        1. You can’t pick between them today! Will the following stats sway your opinion at the end of tomorrow’s race?

          HAM
          – Wins in straight fights = 5

          ROS
          – Wins in straight fights = 0
          – Wins by default = 1 [AUS]
          – Wins by fraud = 1 [MON]

          1. Dear oh dear, can’t we have a sensible non-inflammatory response from either drivers supporters?

          2. @hohum I guess you thought that was Algebra. I’m reposting the same after tomorrow’s race and hopefully you see it for what it is – plain old arithmetic…

          3. @casanachi, No the math is fine, I thought “fraud” was far to strong a word.

    2. What are you talking about ‘recently’? He’s beaten him in 4 consecutive races leading upto Monaco, where he was still quicker than Rosberg in practice and Qualifying leading upto Q3 where he was stopped from going quicker, then he stuck on his tail the entire race. Then on Montreal he was quicker than Rosberg all weekend until he had a significant lockup on his last run and still managed to finishin 0.07 of a second behind him?

      Talk about pure sensastionalism.

    3. WilliamB (@william-brierty)
      7th June 2014, 19:51

      The favourite? Not at all, Hamilton would be at least 11 pts (more likely 18 pts) ahead without his cylinder failure in Australia, and has invariably, admittedly by a small margin, been the faster. Today is an excellent result for F1 because it shows that we genuinely have an epic fight on our hands, with Rosberg confirming that he is definitely fast enough to be Prost to Hamilton’s Senna; something I was not saying following the Spanish Grand Prix. That does not change the fact that a), on the basis of the race pace Hamilton showed on Friday and the efficiency of the DRS here, that Lewis has got a great chance to regain the championship lead and b), the fact that Hamilton probably still remains the thinking man’s title favourite.

      1. Believe me it’s no Senna vs Prost comparison, Nico is too quick over one lap to say that. Hamilton seems to have gone backwards in this car and not not making progress. He’s making a huge mistake IMO showing his hand too soon over the weekend, either that or Rosberg using his brain.

        1. Prost won 4 championships, he wasn’t slow.

          1. Compared to Senna in qualifying he was.

        2. WilliamB (@william-brierty)
          7th June 2014, 22:50

          You are questioning the speed of a four-time champion, a man that took 13 out of 16 poles in 1993 (with the thoroughly underrated Hill in the sister car) a slow qualifier just because he didn’t match up well to the fastest racing driver of all time? Are you sure you have the necessary acumen for an educated blog like this?

          1. It seems there’s something about four-time champions that makes fans like to question their speed fairly frequently…

          2. It’s a relative comparison, no doubt Prost was extremely fast as you saw against Hill but against Senna’s Pure speed he was slow, having the upper hand on racing strategy and car set up, what made him the “Professor” since early in the 80’s . Which is not to say Senna was bad on that either, as his team colleagues point out, but there strengths on these particulars things were such that made the other look week, even thought compared to everyone else it was great.

          3. Hill was there to play lapdog in 93 wether you like it or not. Like I said you can’t call Rosberg and Hamilton the new Senna and Prost because Rosberg is way too fast against his teammate in qualifying.

          4. WilliamB (@william-brierty)
            8th June 2014, 11:27

            Yes, because Hill was obviously contractually obliged to lift off on his qualifying laps, Mr Damonw. Whilst the qualifying dynamic may not be representative of Senna versus Prost (although mistakes from Lewis in Canada and Bahrain and Q3 trickery in Monaco have cost Hamilton a 100% pole record this year), the race and championship dynamics certainly are, and no amount of overt partisan Hamilton hatred can undermine that.

    4. As good as Rosberg was today, he would need to put in a herculean effort tomorrow to contain Hamilton. So I’d still pick the Brit for the win.

  6. I’ll happily eat humble pie with some of my previous comments about Hamilton beating Rosberg psychologically. The momentum has changed, and is now with Rosberg. This race should be an absolute cracker.

    1. Also, very strong performance by JEV today, he goes well here.

    2. It’s nothing to do with psychology it’s down to outright speed, Rosberg must hide his hand till it counts. Hamilton looked all weekend like he was going to destroy him and then Rosberg unleashes the beast.

      1. nonsense, Hamilton lost a atleast a couple of tenths from that pretty major lockup, and still finished inside a tenth of a second of Rosberg. Plus Hamiltons long runs where better in practice, watch out.

      2. Yep was sure a huge gap….

    3. WilliamB (@william-brierty)
      7th June 2014, 19:55

      @craig-o – Whilst I too have an egg on my face, this is not Monaco; the winner of the 2014 Canadian Grand Prix has not just been decided. Having shown better race pace than Nico on Friday and with highly DRS zones, Hamilton still remains my bet for the win tomorrow.

      1. @william-brierty Would that be duck egg by any chance?

        1. WilliamB (@william-brierty)
          7th June 2014, 22:43

          @robbie – No ducks or cake involved in this one my friend, Hamilton has made it too difficult for himself for that, but he retains a great chance to beat Nico tomorrow with the circuit’s DRS efficiency especially. I would suggest that Lewis is, by a whisker, still the favourite for tomorrow, and that we have all the necessary ingredients for a truly epic duel, perhaps even akin to Bahrain.

          1. @william-brierty Kidding aside, I concur with your comment. It’s going to be another epic start. I was so concerned about NR’s start at Monaco, and thought it was his highest pressure moment of the day, and I remain concerned still. I would think LH is still more than a whisker of a favourite and I think F1 doesn’t get much better than this…said in spite of F1’s concerns.

            For me this is what it should be all about, and if ratings are down, which depresses me a bit, what would they be if this was a one-car romp? LH wants to confirm all his past success in F1 with more success, and NR is experiencing new territory by the minute. I think this pole is huge for him and F1 and the fans because I think he’ll have his work cut out for him to win moreso than LH, ie. he already has a positive to take from the weekend even if the hill is still a little steep. But as I have hinted all along, this is NR’s long-dreamed chance and these moments are the ones potential WDC’s go through when they have the car to use fully or squander.

            This is exactly why I absolutely cherished learning in early May that Senna wanted only the best teammate, in his discussions and with signing a letter of intent to go to Ferrari post-Williams. He had to know he was pushed and challenged, to fully appreciate winning. I want and expect LH and NR to have that attitude.

          2. WilliamB (@william-brierty)
            8th June 2014, 9:09

            @robbie – But all Hamilton needs is one victory, preferably when Nico is in fine fettle, like today, to regain the crucial psychological momentum. Whilst yesterday was crucial in that it confirmed Nico’s ability versus Lewis, but today is even more important; it’s about the 25 pts after all. Today could be the finest inter-team duel since, er, the Bahrain Grand Prix…let’s pray they don’t collide…

          3. @william-brierty For sure it is all about the points paying day and the battle could/should be epic and I too do not want to see them collide of course. I’m just not so sure I envision ‘regaining the crucial psychological momentum’ like that is a directly relatable graph or a chart right beside the other charts that track points and poles and wins etc. I think psychological momentum is a great talking point for us fans, a great way to think of this rivalry, but not sure it is the drivers’ actual reality in quite the same way.

            I think both drivers know the lay of the land…they know they have the car….they already know the WDC is going to one of them….and I think they also have help in not getting too high on the highs or low on the lows. Ie. they know this is going to be a season long duel, and whilst I can envision one driver getting a natural and unavoidable boost from a pole or a win, or in this case if LH snatches a win from the pole sitter, I don’t see him then sitting comfortably that NR will be less of a challenge in the next races. And from a psychological standpoint, if NR loses after getting pole, which of course happens a lot where pole doesn’t guarantee the win, he may get even more bound and determined to not let that happen again.

            So even though I opined that NR’s pole was huge, it was huge for him given that this is supposed to be LH’s venue, but this does not mean LH need be psychologically downtrodden, nor that NR will be assuming the race is his. It might have simply fortified LH’s determination for today. So I generally think both these drivers ‘people’ will be trying to keep them grounded throughout this rivalry, keeping the psychological peeks and troughs minimal so that they create as little distraction as possible, while at the same time even trying to turn negatives into positives.

            All that said, these guys aren’t robots, and I think the crucial psychological moments are going to come as the pressure builds as the number of races remaining diminishes, and the split second decisions during the races, with calm cool and collected minds involved, or distracted ones where the concentration isn’t quite there, will play an increasing role to determine who will prevail.

  7. Stunning lap from Rosberg. I never thought someone had it in them to beat Hamilton around Montreal in the same car.

    Strangely enough, I actually think that Rosberg is slightly faster than Hamilton in dry qualifying sessions. It’s 3-1 thus far this season and 10-8 overall as teammates. Rain is Rosberg’s weakness.

    1. “Strangely enough, I actually think that Rosberg is slightly faster than Hamilton in dry qualifying sessions”

      I don’t. What happened in Monaco skews your numbers, and number dont tell a story. Secondly, Hamilton had a significant lock-up today. Sure, a mistake on his part, but he undoubtably lost a couple of tenths of his ultimate laptime. Which, if he had have finished mistake-free, would have made Rosbergs lap look positively ‘normal’ – ie, his usual couple of tenths slower.

    2. @kingshark

      I never thought someone had it in them to beat Hamilton around Montreal in the same car

      The thing is Hamilton’s problem has a name and a surname : Nico Rosberg. The fact that he missed the pole by such narrow margin despite the mistake proves that he had it in his hands and he threw it away. The pressure made by Roseberg who is not the Vettel in qualifying or the Alonso in the race is affecting Hamilton who needs to have some lessons in the politics department, because sometimes the mind games as shown by Roseberg can beat the natural talent.

      1. @tifoso1989
        Ultimate lap time (best sector times added together):
        http://www.formula1.com/results/season/2014/922/7352/best_sector_times.html

        Hamilton 1:14.857
        Rosberg 1:14.866

        There was nothing to choose between them today.

        Also Rosberg is easily as good as Vettel or Ricciardo in qualifying IMO. In fact, I’d go as far as saying that Rosberg is the fastest dry-weather qualifier in the field.

        1. I could make an “ultimate lap time” record at Monza by cutting the first chicane out but that doesn’t count.

          1. @damonw I’m not sure how that’s relevant…

          2. Since when do ultimate sector times count?? What also makes me laugh are the people that predict a race looking at the long runs on a Friday. In Spain going by that method Hamilton would have lapped everyone including is teammate when in reality he was hanging on for dear life come the chequered flag.

        2. @damonw
          Ultimate sector times reveal the fastest time a driver was capable of doing if he strung together a perfect lap. You’re right, they don’t count, but they are very interesting and give us a good indication of a driver’s overall speed in a particular session.

          Also neither Lewis nor Nico ever cut any chicanes today, and even if they did, that sector time would not count, so I’m not sure how that is relevant to this.

          1. There you go then, there’s nothing between them even if they had done their perfect lap. Where was this devastating practice pace Hamilton had over Rosberg when it counted?

            Rosberg is playing the perfect game, taking it easy in practice and then turning it on big time when needed.

  8. Daniel (@collettdumbletonhall)
    7th June 2014, 19:27

    Ericsson tried and failed to emulate Nico Rosberg in Q1 today.
    Kudos to Hamilton on accepting defeat in qualifying gracefully. Seems like he was just miffed about the perceived cheating rather than just being beaten. So excited about tomorrow, this race is going to be close and I don’t really care who wins so long as it is exciting like Bahrain.

  9. Daniel (@collettdumbletonhall)
    7th June 2014, 19:29

    Well done to Vettel too. I honestly thought he was going to get trounced when it was halfway through Q3 but he pulled that lap out of the bag and even beat the Williams’. Stunning.

    1. Yeah, I think the Ricciardo “domination” is somewhat overblown. Vettel had problems with the engine, MGU-K, turbo or gearbox most of the time when Ricciardo was faster than him. Don’t get me wrong, Ricciardo is a very fast driver, and Vettel hasn’t found the best way to drive the new cars yet, but at the end of the season it would be a big surprise if Ricciardo ends up higher than Vettel in the WDC standings. If he does against all odds, all the better for him!

  10. I’m in awe.

    Seriously, if a 40 year old Schumacher held his own to a young much more motivated Rosberg that seems to be on par with Hamilton… Just how actually goddamn good was Michael Schumacher in his prime? Gives me goosebumps just to think about it.

    And, no, I’m not a Schumacher fanboy and I’ve never really been a fan exactly, but this just made me wonder about things.

    1. @aced Amen to that. But I’d also like to think Nico learned a thing or two from Schumi.

  11. Hamilton hasn’t got any excuses in his pocket this year such as “I’m not comfortable with the brakes” infact he’s doing worse in this years car in the dry against Rosberg. I’m telling you now, put your money on Nico for the title!!

    1. Oh dear Damon, yeah Ham is done afterall it is Nico 4-2 in races when they have finshed…

      1. Hamilton is no faster than a Schumacher of 2012 or am I wrong?? So you believe that Hamilton deserves to be payed more than Rosberg when there’s nothing between them?? I’m glad you don’t run my business.

        1. Why do you hate Hamilton so much? Shame. Please take your issues elsewhere

          1. Haha so it’s hate when I point out blatant facts. It’s clear to see that he’s no better against Rosberg speedwise than Schumacher was in 2012, don’t you agree?

        2. OMG it is 4 wins to 2 lol what are you on about i suppose they were wet too. Eh no you’re wrong and you no it when the car is a lock for 1-2 what do you expect the gap to be lol he can only gain 7 points maximum. I mean Ham should be leading the WC aswell.

          You go on like Ros destroyed him lol have you seen the gap last 2 qualifying sessions? Ham messed up his lap it was clear, Ros aced his he gets pole but we no Ham will be winning this tommorow.

          1. The mistake barely cost him anytime at all plus Nico’s lap was far from perfect. Anyway isn’t it the drivers job to not make mistakes when it matters??

          2. @damonw I’m still laughing! Nico must be really bad if he’s only won 2 races to hamilton’s 4….Enjoy tomorrow buddy. Hamilton for his 5th win of the season

          3. Yeah funny how Damon dont respond to Ham 4 dry wins eh.

          4. @dan

            The season is long and the way the second half of it went for Rosberg it’s looking bleak for Lewis. Don’t forget that for two of those wins Rosberg was the quicker driver.

        3. I’m glad I don’t run your business as you are to short sighted to only compare a drivers salary to the performance of his team mate! Performance aside, Lewis is the far more marketable driver for Mercedes globally and is arguably the cheapest advert they have. Merc paid a couple of million to get a two minute ad in the Super Bowl and you’re questioning Lewis’ salary.

          1. Will he still be as marketable next year when his teammate is the new German world champion?? I highly doubt it myself.

    2. @Damonw: Seems like you’re more rattled than Lewis or Nico!

  12. Finally Vettel turned tables for the 2nd row.. great lap and what a great job by Nico too.

  13. I was critical of Vergne at the end of last season when he seemed to have stagnated in his progress, and I thought he could get dumped by Toro Rosso by mid-season if he didn’t improve. This season he has been hit by a lot of bad luck, and whilst I still don’t think he will be with Toro Rosso for next season, I feel his performances this season have been good enough to put himself in the market for a drive elsewhere. He is better than some of the other drivers out there at the moment.

    1. Daniel (@collettdumbletonhall)
      7th June 2014, 19:43

      He’s definitely good enough for F1. The problem he has is that even if he does perform beyond expectations he has nowhere to go. Same with Kyvat, people have been talking him up but where is next for him? Unless Vettel leaves in 2016 for Ferrari he has very few options like Vergne.

  14. I tip my hat to Rosberg for that stunning lap. Having said that, Hamilton will pass him in the first couple of laps, get the preferred strategy and win the race (barring any mechanical failures). Watch this space.

  15. Will be interesting to see how Rosberg handles the pressure of being in front on an overtaking circuit, I wouldn’t put all your money on Britney just yet !

  16. Very similar situation to Bahrain with Hamilton mucking up his final attack. Let’s hope tomorrow is just as exciting! Top performance by Vettel, too. He seemed to be a little anonymous this weekend and I expected Ricciardo to firmly beat him again. It’s going to be interesting to see whether he can hold off those powerful Williams cars at the start.

    1. Loving the excuses of Hamilton mucking up. I bet you can count the number of times a driver does a perfect lap on one hand. The lockup barely cost him any time at all, plus didn’t he already get a banker in which was also slower than Rosberg’s first lap??

      1. You’re posts are hilarious you sure cant hide the hate lol you have commented like 5 times on the same topic get over it Nico is so good in the dry he as finshed 1 dry race infront of Hamilton, enjoy that fact.

        1. Haha it’s hate because I dare say to you that possibly Rosberg is the quicker driver of the pair.

          1. How is he quicker lol Ham has more poles in their time together lol and more wins. And if Ham is so slow in dry how come Nico cant beat him lol.Ham has dominated Ros in 2 races, Ros has not done the same. Monaco was won at 1st corner

          2. That’s just an irrational thing to say. Hamilton has four wins to Rosberg’s two. One of Rosberg’s wins was courtesy of a mechanical failure in Oz–where he failed to put the Merc on the front row.

            In Malaysia Hamilton beat Rosberg to pole by half a second, and Rosberg failed to make the front row a second time. Then Hamilton proceeded to beat Rosberg in the race by a seventeen second margin.

            In Bahrain, Nico would have been nowhere near Hamilton at the end were it not for the safety car, and Rosberg still couldn’t have him in spite of having fresh option tyres and DRS at his disposal.

            At China, Rosberg qualified a miserable 1.3 seconds behind Hamilton and trailed him home by eighteen seconds.

            In Spain, Hamilton was unhappy with the car and was dealing with higher tyre degradation but beat Rosberg to pole and in the race.

            Rosberg did great in Monaco, and he has done well to beat Hamilton here. Obviously he is a top driver, but trying to portay Rosberg as utterly superior to Hamilton when the results prove the opposite is idiocy. When Hamilton qualifies over one second behind Rosberg and finishes a couple of races nearly 20 seconds down, then you can tout Rosberg as the better driver. Right now, it’s a lot of claptrap.

          3. Most of Hamilton’s poles when teammates with Rosberg have been in the wet, Rosberg has out qualified Hamilton in the dry where their ultimate pace is shown.

          4. Ok then damonw maybe Ros is a great what are you trying to prove like you would not have signed Hamilton. Judging by you’re comments i think you’re hurt thats why you would rather Schumi in the other car.

  17. Can anyone confirm that Ferrari went back to their old floor after FP2 yesterday? Seems regressive, considering they had good pace uptil that point.

    1. Oskari Saari (Finnish commentator) said that both Ferraris used the upgrades today.

      1. Strange. BBC says they used old configuration in FP3 and didn’t use the upgrades since it made the car too hot to run reliably.

        Alonso Quote:

        “Some of the package and some of the new pieces we brought here, with the hot temperatures, we need to come back to the old ones because they run too hot so we lost a bit of the advantage we expected here.”

  18. Once again, Nico pocketed Lewis. It´s Monaco all over again in a different, subtle way.

    Just like Monaco, Rosberg set a very good early time which Lewis did not immediately try to beat. This was left for the dying moments of qualifying. Both times it has proven to be Lewis’ undoing during these and previous qualification runs.

    Neither in Monaco nor Montreal did Nico beat his early times. Both second tries were slower than the first ones or Lewis’ last one.

    The question is, why (in those instances) didn’t Lewis give himself a little leeway with two possible attempts instead of just one? Why did he wait for Rosberg to go out first? Was that due to team orders?

    Seb always gave himself enough time for three tries and it paid off.

    Can’t Ham see the light?

    1. Seb had 2 tries. As he always does…

      1. @davidwhite

        Seb had 2 tries. As he always does…

        Hamilton won a lot of races in a row this season, so you got him mixed up there ;)

    2. @carld

      Not exactly a fair analysis. On his first Q3 lap Hamilton was quicker through the first two sectors, but lost all that in the third sector when he hit traffic. I don’t think you can really say he didn’t try.

      Secondly I believe Nico DID improve his second lap, so your statement of it being the same as Monaco is incorrect. As a result, even if Hamilton’s first lap had been clean, it’s unlikely (although not impossible) that Hamilton would have been able to claim pole with just that first lap.

      In either scenario, Hamilton would likely have needed to make his second lap a good one, but he made a mistake in the middle sector. This is the same area that Nico was locking in frequently during the practice sessions, so isn’t particularly telling one way or another. In Lewis’s case however, it was particularly damaging.

      Overall I don’t think this was a “dominant” showing by anyone (other than Mercedes!) not a catastrophic failure. Lewis was a bit unlucky with his first run, and Nico did a better job on their second runs. From what I saw of the sector time, Lewis did have better ultimate pace, and his perfect lap would have seen him on pole, but we never saw that perfect lap (in Q3 at least). There’s no massive life lesson to learn here.

      1. Well said, why can’t more people just see the situation as it was??

      2. Yep, all those comments about who has the edge are useless, they were on par today. We’ll see tomorrow who’s fastest.

    3. They all do the same amount of laps in a team, it’s upto the driver to perform when it counts. Nico must be smirking underneath that helmet going into Q3 knowing how much time he has in his pocket.

  19. May the better driver win. Would be interesting when the Safety car will come out. I would want a race without any SC, just pure sheer racing + strategy

  20. Hamilton was the quicker of the 2, he just made a mistake in sector 2 and lost 3 tenths. Nico did what I expected and put in a solid lap time. Last time in Monaco it was Nico who made the mistake but benefited from it. This time Hamilton was the one to make an error but as you would expect, it cost him dearly.
    As usual people are getting over excited about qualifying. I think you’ll see in the race that Lewis has the legs on Nico, particularly on the soft tire.

    1. Yeah Hamilton was the quicker of the two, who was quickest again on their first flyer?? Rosberg also made a mistake so we can all make excuses.

      1. @damonw

        Lewis was the quicker of the two on their first flyer, as the sector times clearly show. Unfortunately he met traffic at the end of the lap, which cost him dearly.

        However, as I’ve mentioned above, I don’t think it would have been enough to secure pole, and the mistake on his second flyer is what lost it for him.

        What if: he has not met the traffic on that first lap, and had got provisional pole, maybe he wouldn’t have been trying to push so hard in that middle sector second time round and it would have been enough to clinch it? We’ll never know, that’s motor racing.

        Unfortunately for Lewis, pole is not decided by “what ifs”.

        1. @fluxsource good analysis of the qualifying. Sums it up nicely.

        2. Hamilton probably benefitted from the slipstream if anything down the pit straight on his first Q3 lap. IMO it shouldn’t be that close to Nico either way, he should have at least a quarter of a second on Rosberg, that’s what they pay him the big bucks for. ;)

          1. @damonw

            It’s pretty clear he lost time in that final sector, which was confirmed by Peter on the radio. As for “it shouldn’t be that close”? I don’t know Mercedes mind on how they decide on salarys, but personally I’d be more inclined to pay a massive salary to someone who can deliver on race day rather than in qualifying.

            Demanding a quarter second gap because he’s paid more seems more than a little churlish to me.

          2. @Adam

            Surely you’ve got to agree that there’s nothing between them in qualifying and the race?? Don’t you think that Lewis should be handling Nico easier especially with this years car being designed for him? Mercedes payed Hamilton the big bucks because they thought he’d be their number 1 but Nico has proven to be his equal.

          3. @Damonw

            I would agree that Mercedes have got two world class drivers, who are both lightening quick. But I’d argue that quick isn’t the only thing it’ll take to win this year.

            It’s going to take that extra something special to win the championship this year. That extra half a tenth exactly where it counts. The overtaking move on the final lap. The ability to make your car twice the width (eg Bahrain) or to be ruthless enough to deliberately hamper your team mates lap (eg Monaco, at least according to some). That’s what Hamilton earns the big bucks for – because he’s proven he’s got that something extra. The biggest reason this year is exciting is because by the end of the season we’ll know if Nico deserves the big bucks too.

            Even with a retirement, Lewis has 4 wins to Nico’s 2, and in a season where you realistically have no other opponents, that’s incredibly important.

            As for your argument that the car is designed for him, I call that BS. Mercedes have made it abundantly clear they have no number one driver, and I believe them. There car is developed for/by the both of them.

          4. Hamilton stated himself that this years car was designed around him, do you really believe that the team wouldn’t build the car around their star man?? Yeah you’re right that extra half tenth will count but sadly for you it looks like Nico is carrying it.

          5. @Damonw

            Sadly for me? Why? How does that effect me?

            do you really believe that the team wouldn’t build the car around their star man??

            Do you really believe that the team wouldn’t build the car around both their drivers?

            As for that extra half a tenth, the stats show that Hamilton has it so far. Winning the qualifying battle 4-3, and two of those he’s lost he arguably had the better potential pace (Monaco: if he’d replicated his sector 2 and 3 times from the first lap, it would have beaten Nico’s time).

            Please don’t misunderstand me – I’m not a Hamilton fanatic. But that doesn’t make what you’re saying correct. I’m just glad it’s such an exciting season.

        3. @fluxsource Don’t waste your energy on this guy called Damonw. He is blinded by hatred so any analysis will fall on deaf ears unless you speak against Hamilton.

          1. @neelv27

            I know, I know, but I can’t help it. Maybe it’ll help prevent someone else believing him?

  21. Good lap from NR, mistake by LH.

    However, given that LH as been ahead in 5 of the 6 sessions this weekend, I suspect he’s still the favorite for the win tomorrow.

    1. And in the first of the two sessions that count the most Rosberg was the man yet again. I expect a nice controlled race from the German tomorrow with a comfartable win.

  22. Also, Seems like a “German” Decade – Seb and now Nico Rosberg, and who knows Nico Hulk in future. Hmm…

    1. More like a German century… with a brief Spanish-Finnish-British interruption.

  23. First time Lewis will be doing the chase on a normal track.
    Can’t wait for the race!

  24. Can’t wait for the race tomorrow

  25. Maybe Keith would want to post all Q3 times in sequence, attempt by attempt, for Nico and Lewis along with sector times.

    I think I recall the commentator stating that Nico’s last time was not as good at his previous (best) one.

    1. No, Nico’s second time was better than his first time in Q3 (around 0.079 seconds if I recall correctly).

  26. I really hope Valtteri can get he’s first podium tomorrow.

  27. With all the top drivers setting their fastest laps on the super softs in Q2, I’m guessing early pit stops in the race, within 10 laps?

  28. Great guali tonight, I think we all enjoyed it! Nico stunning once again in dry qualifying but Lewis very close behind him! It should be an amazing battle tomorrow! The scenario for the Canadian grand prix was supposed to be damage limitation for Nico and psychological boost for Lewis but it hasn’t turned out to be the case so far. I believe that- provided they don’t take each other out tomorrow (for some odd reason I fear that this will happen)- Nico has the upper hand. But who knows? Maybe tomorrow will be Spain 2012! I am a Ferrari fan but I’d love to see a Williams winning! And their pace so far has been fantastic all weekend!

    1. quali*

  29. 23kennyboy23
    7th June 2014, 21:17

    For those writing hamilton off the difference in laptime is tiny. Long afternoon tomorrow and DRS along that straight could have them swapping positions throughout

    1. Not to mention the Wall.

  30. Cant wait Damon humble pie for you tommorow. You contraidt yourself the worst on this forum you say Ros is better just because of dry qualifying who is winning the dry races.

  31. No one is mentioning the fact that as Lewis puts down a stunning lap, Nico can just grab Lewis’ data. So where Lewis is naturally gifted, Rosberg can try as hard as he can, and when that doesn’t work, he can say, “alright boys, let’s have Lewis’ data”. If we sense a little bit of frustration in Hamilton’s demeanour, it’s got to be that.

    1. No. LH has all the access to NR’s data that NR has of his. They are each pushing each other as are both sides of the garage. They all get to see where one driver is excelling over the other, on what corners and what sectors, and they get to figure out why and try to improve and outdo each other. Seeing each others’s data is no guarantee that they can simply change some setting or some setup and improve, without upsetting the feel of the car that helped gain pace in other areas. It’s a constant work in progress equal all around within the whole team. Taking or rejecting ideas at all times. Studying. Learning. Trying. Guessing. Adapting. It’s all good.

      If LH is frustrated today it probably shows he is human and is like most professional athletes and performers….his own biggest critic.

  32. Well that just shows how good Rosberg is, struggling to find a good setup of my own, copying my teammates setup that as been perfected for him and still out qualifying him.

    1. Well that just shows how good Rosberg is, struggling to find a good setup of my own

      Hehe. Time to stop commenting and have a lie down.

  33. Come on Hamilton, get your head in the game.

  34. I was quite disappointed in Massas performance in q3. He was doing great but he didn’t get the lap together. Shame, AS HE could have done well. Still better than bottas imo.

  35. Chris (@tophercheese21)
    8th June 2014, 3:06

    Gotta love how people are proclaiming that Nico is now faster than Lewis over 1 lap.
    Lewis made two mistakes on that final Q3 lap, one at T2 and another at T8, yet he was less than a tenth of a second slower.

    My money is still on Lewis tomorrow.
    Hopefully it’s a close fight for the win though. These two race very hard and very fair together.

  36. pretty rare anybody does a perfect lap in qually especially Q3 , so personally I would be amazed if either of these drivers beat the other all the time

    nobody seems to have noticed the crucial fact about this race , it is probably the most crucial on fuel for the season …and one of these guys is consistently better on usage than the other , could make a decisive difference

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