Mark Webber continued Red Bull’s run of dominance in qualifying with his third consecutive pole position at Istanbul.
But Lewis Hamilton prevented a Red Bull lock-out of the front row.
Last year’s front row occupants Sebastian Vettel and Jenson Button share the second row.
Q1
Sebastian Vettel signalled his intention in Q1 with a lap almost half a second faster than his team mate’s. The two Red Bulls ended the session on top with Jenson Button third in the McLaren.
As usual the three new teams failed to progress beyond the first stage of qualifying. Jarno Trulli was the quickest of the six cars, beating team mate Heikki Kovalainen by three tenths of a second.
Vitantonio Liuzzi was the only driver from the established teams to fail to reach Q2. Unlike team mate Adrian Sutil, who missed almost all of final practice, Liuzzi was running Force India’s F-duct on his car.
But he wasn’t able to improve his time on his second effort and, not for the first time in 2010, his qualifying session was over in the first 20 minutes.
Q2
A tight second part of qualifying brought a surprise elimination – Fernando Alonso.
Just three tenths of a second covered Button in fourth to Rosberg in 12th as the drivers began their final laps. Alonso was already in the drop zone and a mistake at turn 12 on his penultimate lap left followed by a failure to improve on his final effort left him out of Q3.
Once again it was the two Red Bull cars at the top of the times, with Hamilton in close attendance. Vitaly Petrov made it through to Q3 along with team mate Kubica.
Q3
Webber went fastest on the drivers’ first runs, edging Hamilton by three hundredths of a second.
Behind them their team mates were even closer – Vettel just two hundredths faster than Button.
Webber found even more time on his final run and although Hamilton improved as well, Webber held on to pole position.
Vettel, however, made a mistake at the first corner and instantly spoiled his lap. That gave an opportunity for Button to get ahead but he wasn’t able to capitalise.
Button had dropped back and let Schumacher past before they started their final laps. But that backfired when Schumacher spun off at turn eight and Button had to back off because of the yellow flags.
Schumacher stayed fifth and will share the third row with team mate Nico Rosberg.
Full qualifying result
Pos. | # | Driver | Car | Q1 | Q2 | Q3 |
1 | 6 | Mark Webber | Red Bull-Renault | 1’27.500 | 1’26.818 | 1’26.295 |
2 | 2 | Lewis Hamilton | McLaren-Mercedes | 1’27.667 | 1’27.277 | 1’26.433 |
3 | 5 | Sebastian Vettel | Red Bull-Renault | 1’27.067 | 1’26.729 | 1’26.760 |
4 | 1 | Jenson Button | McLaren-Mercedes | 1’27.555 | 1’27.013 | 1’26.781 |
5 | 3 | Michael Schumacher | Mercedes | 1’27.756 | 1’27.438 | 1’26.857 |
6 | 4 | Nico Rosberg | Mercedes | 1’27.649 | 1’27.141 | 1’26.952 |
7 | 11 | Robert Kubica | Renault | 1’27.766 | 1’27.426 | 1’27.039 |
8 | 7 | Felipe Massa | Ferrari | 1’27.993 | 1’27.200 | 1’27.082 |
9 | 12 | Vitaly Petrov | Renault | 1’27.620 | 1’27.387 | 1’27.430 |
10 | 23 | Kamui Kobayashi | Sauber-Ferrari | 1’28.158 | 1’27.434 | 1’28.122 |
11 | 14 | Adrian Sutil | Force India-Mercedes | 1’27.951 | 1’27.525 | |
12 | 8 | Fernando Alonso | Ferrari | 1’27.857 | 1’27.612 | |
13 | 22 | Pedro de la Rosa | Sauber-Ferrari | 1’28.147 | 1’27.879 | |
14 | 16 | Sebastien Buemi | Toro Rosso-Ferrari | 1’28.534 | 1’28.273 | |
15 | 9 | Rubens Barrichello | Williams-Cosworth | 1’28.336 | 1’28.392 | |
16 | 17 | Jaime Alguersuari | Toro Rosso-Ferrari | 1’28.460 | 1’28.540 | |
17 | 10 | Nico Hulkenberg | Williams-Cosworth | 1’28.227 | 1’28.841 | |
18 | 15 | Vitantonio Liuzzi | Force India-Mercedes | 1’28.958 | ||
19 | 18 | Jarno Trulli | Lotus-Cosworth | 1’30.237 | ||
20 | 19 | Heikki Kovalainen | Lotus-Cosworth | 1’30.519 | ||
21 | 24 | Timo Glock | Virgin-Cosworth | 1’30.744 | ||
22 | 21 | Bruno Senna | HRT-Cosworth | 1’31.266 | ||
23 | 25 | Lucas di Grassi | Virgin-Cosworth | 1’31.989 | ||
24 | 20 | Karun Chandhok | HRT-Cosworth | 1’32.060 |
2010 Turkish Grand Prix
Image (C) Red Bull/Getty images
S Hughes
29th May 2010, 13:18
Absolutely brilliant job by Lewis – to be so close to the Red Bulls was magnificent – S2 was his only undoing but that couldn’t be helped. Fingers crossed for tomorrow.
JUGNU
29th May 2010, 13:55
agree completely with S huges
Hamilton did a mega job today and even better news is someone closed the big gap to Redbull to only few tenths now. Races will not be boring now and also hopefully competitive qualifyings from now on.
MigueLP
29th May 2010, 17:53
also thank webber to stop the talking about vettel im sick of people who think vet is the best and specially of the people ruling out web from the champ AND WHAT A ABOUT THAT CHASSIS EXCUSE VETTEL AND SCHUMI great work ham always better than BUT and the ferraris are the disappointment i love ferrari but poor qualy
Hamish
29th May 2010, 13:19
Keith may want to alter the Q3 times so they’re not sub-minute.
on9
29th May 2010, 13:20
Good session from Mclaren!
Looking forward to see Mark vs Lewis and Seb sneak by the two of them to win!
Damon
29th May 2010, 13:23
Haha, I remember someone made a mistake typing lap times in the prediction game. He’d be happy with that now.
Keith Collantine (@keithcollantine)
29th May 2010, 13:25
Sorry, using a new system this weekend, evidently not completely foolproof yet!
Hamish
29th May 2010, 13:27
Don’t be sorry mate. Im merely here as quality control.
rfs
29th May 2010, 13:21
Good job, Lewis. Does anyone think he can jump Mark at the start?
J
29th May 2010, 13:40
He certainly can and will too
Bigbadderboom
29th May 2010, 14:54
Great job Lewis, I think it’s more than likely Lewis may be able to capitalise on his performance in Quali. I’d have a small wager on lewis leading after the first lap.
nik
29th May 2010, 16:16
Webber must be the toughest driver to overtake at the start. He doesn’t get off the line well, but he defends like a madman.
Good job from Hamilton today – he has been driving well all year. But seriously, what has happen with Webber – he has out-qualified Vettel by half a second *again*. That man is certainly on a mission.
I picked Webber/Vettel/Hamilton for the top 3 and it came through – just not in the order I expected :)
nik
29th May 2010, 16:26
Other observations: the pole time this year was 2 seconds faster than last year – which is amazing.
Four of the past 5 Turkish Grand Prix have been won from pole. Vettel broke the run last year when he slipped at turn nine allowing button to overtake him (a great moment of the season).
Last year both Webber and Rubens started on the dirty side of the track – and they both lost places at the start (Webber regained over Trulli later in the first lap). So there is a significant effect of starting in an even numbered position – which could hamper Hamilton tomorrow.
It also may seem that Mercedes have overtaken Ferrari based on the results today. Alonso made yet another mistake, but the team must be disappointed with Massa running behind the 3 other top teams and a Renault (this was supposed to be his race, where he re-affirms himself and his position at the team on a track that he excels at).
DanThorn
29th May 2010, 16:55
Don’t forget that a lot of the time difference is down to the fact they were running race fuel in qualifying last year.
johnno
29th May 2010, 16:44
I think he will have to do it right at the first corner because the advantage red bull have in turn 8 means he wont be able to get close enough to them on the straight. Excellent quali for him though :D
Glenn
29th May 2010, 13:21
There is no way that i can see Hamilton stuffing his car down the inside of turn 1. If WEB does not get in front of HAM before turn in WEB is in grave danger..
nik
29th May 2010, 18:49
webber has been preventing that move this year by swinging right across as soon as he can and closing off that option by taking the inside line and forcing the other driver onto the outside. He did it in Spain, in Monaco and we all remember how he did it to Rubens last season
Glenn
29th May 2010, 13:22
“not* stuffing”
Victor.
29th May 2010, 13:23
Thrilled for four reasons:
1) Webber destroyed Vettel
2) Red Bull did not lock out the first row
3) Petrov got within 0.4 of a second to Kubica
4) Alonso will be chasing up the field tomorrow
Furthermore, congratulations to Renault for out-qualifying Ferrari, and Kubica being extremely close to Mercedes ;).
Enigma
29th May 2010, 14:10
1), 2) and 4) all happened in Monaco quali as well :)
sumedh
29th May 2010, 14:15
Red Bull did not lock out front row. Only the 3rd time out of 7 races has that happened!!
The other 2 instances being Bahrain GP (Webber made a mistake) and Malaysian GP (It was a wet qualifying session). Today (Vettel made a mistake).
Even the 2004 Ferrari wasn’t so dominant in qualifying!!
Enigma
29th May 2010, 14:34
What about Monaco?
Pinball - roadography.com
29th May 2010, 21:36
Yeah I think Petrov is really starting to improve. It’s starting to look like he just needed a few races to find his feet.
S.J.M
29th May 2010, 13:23
Well done Lewis, hoping for a mad Banzai dash to the 1st corner with a Brit in the lead.
Interesting comments from Vettel in the drivers conference afterwards regarding his break issues..
Brake Bias
29th May 2010, 13:23
Great stuff for Red Bull. Hopefully MW can beat LH in the drag to the first corner & lead the race from Go to Whoa.
Glenn
29th May 2010, 13:25
Vettel having another brake problem? hmm yes i think reliability will bite again.
on9
29th May 2010, 13:25
Please Seb, take this win with Mandy!!
Jhonnie Siggie
30th May 2010, 0:16
Good luck with that yo! I think Mandy a bit shabby….
steph
29th May 2010, 13:26
Funny how last year most RBR fans were bored of Brawn by this point and now they’re loving it. Now Merc, Ferrari and Mclaren must be sick and everyone else just slightly disheartened :P
Smashing job today by Webber. I don’t like to read too much into things but though Seb would be a bit closer to Webber this season.
Good job also by Hamilton, HRT esp Bruno and Petrov.
Lotus quali battle is 4-3 to Trulli so maybe Trulli needs a little more praise even if he is looking grumpy and is the quasli master anyway ;)
Massa put in a good job today I think. I would have liked a little more but he’s struggled with harder tyres a lot so nice to see he was challenging Alonso.
Mistake from Alonso, a pity but he’s a fighter so some points would be nice. I’m starting to feel sorry for the guy for the amount of stick he’s getting lately though! I’m a bit confused by the mistakes as in 06 against Schumi he was so close to flawless it was unnerving but a few mistakes aren’t the end of the world.
DanThorn
29th May 2010, 13:31
I thought that too – Brundle’s outburst against Fernando came from nowhere! I think he’s overdriving to make up for various mistakes made by himself and the team this year – it’s not like Alonso at all.
Zahir
29th May 2010, 13:42
Yeah I remember last year (I think at Singapore) Fernando was saying how he may not always be the quickest or pull out the fastest lap but he is always consistant. This year he has been far from consistant, or you could argue, consistantly making mistakes.
Should be fun to see him make his way up the field though.
Todfod
29th May 2010, 13:55
I agree. This year Fernando has not displayed the mental composure that has helped him win in 2005 & 06. I think the pressure of driving for Ferrari, as well as making up for some lost opportunities is getting to him. He needs to calm down and avoid unnecessary risks.
Jhonnie Siggie
30th May 2010, 0:32
He became aware of his mortality after being pitted against Hamilton. Poor thing can never be the same again
steph
29th May 2010, 13:44
Brundle’s outburst was a surprise, the way he said it made me chuckle though even if I thought it was harsh. I’m a lot more disappointed with some articles and fans who have called Alonso “the fake champion” etc.
I think if Alonso relaxed or did whatever he needs to do to be more conmfortable and not overdrive then he’ll get in a better situation. He’s still showing his worth by his recoveries but his mistakes are really taking much needed points from his title campaign. It is unlike Fernando right now but I’m sure he can get back to his usual ways before long. I’d lvoe the points for him but at least he is being entertaining
Wificats
29th May 2010, 14:29
Maybe he’s trying to be too different from Schumacher and wants to be like “Gilles” so that the Ferrari fans will truly love him.
HG
30th May 2010, 2:31
yes, the outburst was a little bit harsh. Sounded like he had been saving it up for a while. I honestly think that fernando is just trying too hard at the moment as is just making lots of silly mistakes as a result.
Christian
29th May 2010, 14:40
Well done to Senna.
Beat his team-mate in qualifying yet again (by 0.8sec), and finished ahead of a Virgin car on merit too. The BBC seemed very harsh on him today!
HG
30th May 2010, 2:35
yes they did seem a bit harsh on young Bruno. I had to laugh at DC “explain yourself with your head in turn 8″ ” I was taking a nap”
Well maybe not direct quotes :)
Metallion
29th May 2010, 13:53
Regarding your comment about thinking Vettel would be a bit closer to Webber this season. I think with them being on equal points after the first 6 races it can’t get much closer:)Vettel had the better pace in the first part of the season but also had some problems while Webber’s had the upper hand the past few races. There’s still a long way to go and it looks like it could be a nice close fight:)
steph
29th May 2010, 14:25
Yeah it should be a close fight. I didn’t phrase that very well at all did I? :P I meant I thought Vettel would be ahead of Mark
Jhonnie Siggie
30th May 2010, 0:44
A close fight between the Bulls is perfect for the likes of HAM, ALO & KUB. It might in fact be their only shot of overhauling them and taking the championship late in the season. If RB ever had a paring like MSC and BAR, MSC would have been leading by miles. This is the unfortunate thing when you have 2 drivers, neither of which can consistently beat the other. You might win the constructor’s title but it gives the opposition a sniff at the driver’s title
Simon
29th May 2010, 13:26
Good job by webber again. Hamilton drove very well for second, but clean side of the track more important here than in Monaco or Barcelona due to side the cars run and also short distance to turn one. Vettel is under pressure now, alot of pressure, interesting stuff.
haha
29th May 2010, 13:27
LH is on the dirtier side, so he could be busy defending against mad Vettel or be knocked out by Vettel if he is unlucky.
I can see lots of lock ups and cars going off-road tomorrow. Would the front leaders make such mistakes?
DanThorn
29th May 2010, 13:28
Very surprised at Fernando’s comments about him being on the absolute limit even without the mistake. In that case looks like Massa’s done a great job but Ferrari have really messed it up on such a historic and important weekend for them.
Great to see that McLaren seem to have sussed their qualifying and they could be a major headache for Red Bull in the race. Mark’s going to have to have a super first lap tomorrow to stave off Hamilton.
steph
29th May 2010, 13:30
I didn’t know about Alonso’s comments so thanks for that Dan. I can feel happier with Felipe now!
Ferrari seem to slip up in quali taking gambles, Mal would be the last example. Hopefully a good race strategy, pace and overtaking will see our drivers get some good points!
DanThorn
29th May 2010, 13:34
Indeed! I’ve already planned how the race is going to go tomorrow, ending with Alonso first and Massa second. ;)
steph
29th May 2010, 13:39
I’d love Massa first but because it is Ferrari I can accept that result esp on the 800th GP :P
Dianna
29th May 2010, 23:23
Michael Schumacher made Ferrari great in recent years,after the time they spent in the doldrums,let us hope they are not slipping back too much.
Byron R
29th May 2010, 13:31
What ? no posts about Michael intentionally throwing car off to maintain his position!
Keith Collantine (@keithcollantine)
29th May 2010, 13:38
Looked like a mistake to me. From the one replay I saw I did wonder if he could have made it out of the run-off but haven’t had chance to look at it closely.
Maksutov
29th May 2010, 14:51
i am sure if you look hard enough you will see exactly what you want!
PeriSoft
29th May 2010, 13:38
Hah, I was waiting for that. Somehow I don’t think turn 8 is where you’d do it… :)
Maiq
29th May 2010, 13:55
From TV I think that Schumacher has damaged his tyres, in the case that may be they are very damaged, can he change his tyres?
Lee Sharp
29th May 2010, 15:36
He will use the tyres he set his fastest lap of regardless of whether he went off on them.
He set that time on his first run so will use the other set of tyres from Q3
Todfod
29th May 2010, 13:58
LOL. Well this time Schumi was just plain stupid, as he parked the car way off track.
PeriSoft
29th May 2010, 17:44
How’s that stupid? Parking the car close to the track would seem considerably ill-advised.
wasiF1
29th May 2010, 18:32
Schumi made a mistake by missing the first apex then he was just a passenger after that. He could have back off & abort that lap, hope he didn’t damage his car under aero.
Patrickl
29th May 2010, 19:52
He could have backed off or was he passenger?
To me it looked like he kept pushing when he should have given up.
David
30th May 2010, 4:04
That wasn’t a mistake. I’ve watched 3 or 4 onboard shots of him through turn 8 during the weekend and he misses the first, second and third apexes purposely, and only connects up with the kerb on fourth. He simply just bottomed out.
Pinball - roadography.com
29th May 2010, 21:42
I reckon it was an honest mistake. I guess even “the best” slip up sometimes. Turn 8 is a beast of a corner. no one would be stupid enough to purposely lose control and spin on a 260km/h corner.
hoshi
29th May 2010, 13:33
Alonso has messed up my prediction..tow times in a row now..
Kobayashi should also be praised for his good effort going into q3.
disappointed with karun getting comprehensively beaten by bruno..come on karun!!!
Dianna
29th May 2010, 23:26
Alonso does not look well to me.His face in the last few races shows extreme tiredness.
J
29th May 2010, 13:37
So happy for Webber. He totally deserves to shine!!!
LOL @ Vettel rolling eyes at the press conference. He’s such a sore loser!
Watch out for Hamilton Webber at the first corner!
J
29th May 2010, 13:42
And big LOL @ Alonso
I bet Ferrari is thinking huh, maybe we should have kept Iceman
Simon
29th May 2010, 13:50
Iceman or Icecream man?
Alonso is making some mistakes, but is still trying. I loved Kimi, but he was over it and should not come back.
New stars and heros come along, look what Webber and Button are doing in good cars!
Metallion
29th May 2010, 13:58
I think if it had been Kimi in that Ferrari, getting the results Alonso is getting, he would have got a whole lot more criticism than what Alonso is getting.
Todfod
29th May 2010, 14:05
@J. Im a big fan of Kimi, but he was getting his behind kicked by Massa in 2008 and uptil Hungary 2009.
Now… Massa > Kimi and
Alonso > Massa
Do the math. I really dont think Ferrari is regretting their decision to get Alonso. Other than Kubica, Alonso was the best driver they could get.
John H
29th May 2010, 14:19
I think you’re forgetting Massa’s bash to the head Todfod.
nik
29th May 2010, 18:57
Theory: it is impossible to have a comment thread on the internet about motor racing without somebody eventually mentioning Kimi
vettelfan
29th May 2010, 14:00
Interesting stat: Except for last year, every driver to finish 1st and 2nd in Turkey, has started from pole and 3rd.
Things could be looking better for Vettel now.
haha
29th May 2010, 14:23
Yeah, I wish LH lets Vettel go so he could scrap with his mate. LH has no other competition judging from his Qs and drive. It should be a guaranteed 3rd place for him.
J
29th May 2010, 14:12
Vettel is such a sore loser! Look at him looking away in the picture and being so miserable overall.
Gustav
29th May 2010, 14:20
About 1000 pictures are taking of the drivers every day. You can’t expect them to look all happy and satisfied all the time. Of course he is disappointed, if he wasn’t competitive enough to be disappointed he wouldn’t be in F1. It has absolutely nothing to do with being a sore loser.
Hamilton will take it tomorrow, he’ll kill Webber on the first lap!
J
29th May 2010, 14:58
You are right. He has to be dissappointed hey.
Krosh
29th May 2010, 22:25
hehehehe. Really, being happy every time is very very hard. J, what were u expecting? There are cameras in almost all positions. How could Vettel say “X” to all? heheheheh
SoLiD
29th May 2010, 14:27
A great champion must be dissapointed after he failed to deliver the maximum!
Should he be happy? Surely not!
David A
29th May 2010, 15:25
Because top F1 drivers are supposed to be always satisfied with 3rd place…
The Nude Wizard
29th May 2010, 21:32
While i think Vettel has every right to be dissapointed, show it and say so, there’s also a right and a wrong way to do things and i think his performance at the post quali press conference once muttering comments under his breath in reply to Webber and later rolling his eyes after Mark had spoke i found to be very childish, unprofessional and unsporting. Even if his intent was none of the above, it’s all about appearances and he had to know the world was watching it wasn’t a matter of an unfortunate camera snap shot.
christopheraser
30th May 2010, 3:57
I agree, before this season started I was sure that Vettel would beat Webber. I am glad that Webber has found something and taken it back to Seb. After watching Vettel in the press conference I hope Webber pounds him the rest of this season.
You didn’t see Webber acting like a petulant child last year when he was regularly beaten by Vettel, he was just happy to be in a team team that was performing and Vettel should consider himself lucky too. Doesn’t take much for a team to drop off the radar.
M0tion
29th May 2010, 14:20
Big tick for Petrov, the circuit might suit him but he didn’t crack either. Alonso and Schumacher cracked but don’t run them down for running off, they were just over the edge. Thats what I meant about Massa earlier he might have had 3 run offs in Q3 but he found his edge in a Ferrari that didn’t have it. When Alonso talks afterwards about his performance and the car he never b/s’s, the best thing about Alonso.
Webber had Vettel right up to Q3 despite the scorecard times, but Vettel was more than close in Q3 despite the mistakes / car rear end collapsing. I wonder now if they have to work on it in parc ferme??????
SoLiD
29th May 2010, 14:26
Great stuff by Webber. Knew he was a good driver… but I must say I didn’t think he was this good.
I do expect something from Lewis in the race, as he has been very strong on race pace. That goes extra on the hard compound, on wich they will race the longest!
The first stint will be crucial, if Webber can’t open a big gap he will be vunerable for Lewis!
on9
29th May 2010, 14:30
I can totally understand his frustration…
To be honest, we see more of the car letting him down than him letting the car (or the team) down…
Oh c’mon Mandy!
on9
29th May 2010, 14:32
oh by the way,
does any one know if RBR is allowed to fix the rear end of Seb’s car?
(darn it, reliability)
rayan
29th May 2010, 14:36
i bet guys,,tommorow will be a boring race….iam watching for felipe and michael..
Nick
29th May 2010, 14:39
Hey Keith, why aren’t you calling out Alonso for being slower than Massa?
Keith Collantine (@keithcollantine)
29th May 2010, 16:01
I don’t review every single drivers’ performance in the qualifying round-up. Check the post-race driver form notes for that.
Having said that I have put up a short piece noting Ferrari’s general lack of pace in the session.
Maiq
29th May 2010, 14:39
I would like to know what would be the penalization if Schumacher decides to change the tyres. Because I think that it have been damaged. Thanks in advance
SoLiD
29th May 2010, 14:42
You need to start the race on the tyres you set your fastest time on (in Q3 that is)… That’s not the set he destroyed! So no problems for Schumi there!
on9
29th May 2010, 14:45
phew! lucky lucky!
wasiF1
29th May 2010, 18:16
@ Solid
Isn’t the rule that you will start the race with the tyres that you finish your qualifying? Correct me if I am wrong.
SoLiD
29th May 2010, 22:56
Nope. Ross Brawn confirmed this in his interview after qualy!
DaveW
29th May 2010, 14:47
RedBull have been caught. .14 seconds in qualifying is nothing in the current rules and finally we may see RBR properly pushed in a race. McLaren has showed good race pace, and we know that RBR is basically borderline on brakes. I’m sure they don’t want to be pushed, not in this heat. This is third race in a row where RBR have not showed dominant speed all weekend, so I don’t know why people continue to debate whether they will be caught. Even Vettels .7s advantage over Hamilton in Spain translated into getting jumped, and, if not for a mechanical, getting beaten. Not wishful thinking, but a clear-eyed look at the record.
KNF
29th May 2010, 14:51
I’m more worried about Button, his race starts have been rather poor and he tends to lose about two or three positions during the start. If he ends up behind Schumacher or Rosberg, there’s no way he’ll get past them. He needs to be giving Vettel some pressure at least during the race.
nik
29th May 2010, 19:01
that would be a great stat to have actually, the +/- position of every driver after lap 1 from starting position, so we can see clearly who starts well and who doesn’t
VXR
29th May 2010, 15:25
Vettel will move ahead of Hamilton at the start. He’s on the clean side of the track. Hamilton may have to defend his place from Schumacher, who will already have got passed Button who is also on the same dirty side of the track as Hamilton is.
Patrickl
29th May 2010, 19:53
Hamilton has the F-duct
haha
29th May 2010, 20:04
About a couple of races a go, RBR would have jumped and done anything they liked to LH and JB. But I don’t think it is that easy now. We will see tomorrow @1:03pm GMT.
steph
29th May 2010, 15:26
I’m gutted for Alonso and that the F10 wasn’t that quick today but I am slightly happy by this from Dyer
“Felipe did a great job, managing to get into Q3 and getting every last possible fraction of performance out of the car” …I can manage half a smile then
HounslowBusGarage
29th May 2010, 20:36
Crikey Steph! That quote from Dyer should really worry you. Massa got the absolute max from the car and he was still that far from the front row?
Calum
29th May 2010, 16:06
There is a chance tomorrow! You’re looking for Lewis to keep a level head, and stay ahead of Vettel and also hope for a probable Webber reliability issue. Lewis for the win to reignite his title chances… I hope. Wouldn’t bet on it though, if lewis wants the win he’s going to try and go around the outside at T8 or something similarly crazy ;)
Rahim RG
29th May 2010, 16:30
i think tomorrow’s race is going to be a cracker…..
surprised to see Red Bull reliability even on a track that is not that harsh on its breaks……
Webber
Lewis/Vettel if Breaks are sorted
Schumacher
wasiF1
29th May 2010, 18:10
Will Schumacher start the race on the tyres he qualify as he have flat-spotted them badly.
& there seems to be some under aero damage of his car?
Aussie Fan
30th May 2010, 7:07
Aero Damage? where did you hear this? Even if there was, I’m sure the team is allowed to inspect the car & replace any broken parts, just like what Red Bull will be doing to Vettel’s Anti Roll Bar today….
wasiF1
31st May 2010, 4:47
The car slide at high speed on the gravel so I thought there may be some damage on the under side of the car.
Icthyes
29th May 2010, 17:23
Of all the qualifying sessions to miss! Hopefully it will be a great race, with Hamilton ahead of Mark but keeping close and things interesting!
adam b
29th May 2010, 17:48
i think hamilton will have to take it easy on his tyres
wasiF1
29th May 2010, 18:01
Couldn’t agree more, he had some bad race with tyres in 07 & 08 when he changed 3 times that year.
VXR
29th May 2010, 18:42
I think that the RedBull’s being harder on their tyres will be more of a factor during the race.
But yes, Lewis has had problems with tyres during previous races at this circuit. No complaints from anyone about tyres so far.
Patrickl
29th May 2010, 19:54
Actually just about everyone was complaining that the softs basically could do only one fast lap.
wasiF1
29th May 2010, 17:57
Great qualifying session from Webber once again he raised his game. Alonso’s mistake may cost him this race I really don’t expect that from him. Petrov once again is the best rookie.
The question that is in mind is that will Schumacher starts the race where he is qualified? Thats’ the only mistake he made in his return in F1.First his car does look to have some under aero damage which may needs some repairing & hence force him to start the race from the back. Even if he starts the race where he is now the tyres will be a issue as we can clearly see that he have flat-spotted them.He did a great qualifying lap it will be a shame not to convert that into a strong race result tomorrow.
Aussie Fan
30th May 2010, 7:08
He won’t be using that set of tyres, he will be using the set he did his fastest time on, which are fine as he didn’t spin the car on that run
MacLeod
29th May 2010, 17:59
FI really did a bad job 17th and 11th place. Ok Sutil did well compared with his problem this weekend. But Luizzi he should be in top 10 with the duct I am sure next year he is replaced if they don’t do it soon.
dragon
29th May 2010, 18:08
Firstly…
Did Vettel have a real braking problem, or did he just flat-spot his tyres badly enough with the first lockup that he made heavy braking difficult from then on?
Secondly…
Ok, so the RB6 was untouchable in Spain. But I personally thought it was just two great laps from Webber in Monaco and Istanbul, and it’s starting to irritate me that some feel it’s just a walkup front row for either RB driver. Even the journalist conducting the post-quali interview subtly made it sound as though Lewis was driving an underperforming car that he dragged into second, and would maybe have had pole with a better car. The McLaren is FAST around this track! They lose out in sector two, particularly turn 8, and make it back up with the long straight down to sector 3, and both teams are even through slow speed corners. I get the feeling Webber is also starting to be irked by this, and not quite getting the credit he deserves for uncorking some brilliant flying laps.
VXR
29th May 2010, 18:46
“Did Vettel have a real braking problem,”
Vettel had a broken roll bar.
VXR
29th May 2010, 18:48
Horner also said that Vettel has not flat-spotted any of his tyres.
Roll bar will be replaced in the morning.
Sam
29th May 2010, 18:30
1/ One of the redbulls i anticipate to have a DNF
2/ Lewis is going to get excited and wear his tires out.
3/ I reckon schumacher had a good chance at a podium.
4/ I have a feeling something bad will happen at the start in the front.
VXR
29th May 2010, 18:36
Maybe more towards the end. :)
VXR
29th May 2010, 18:38
I think Schumacher will be looking to take both McLaren’s into the first corner. Both McLaren’s are on the dirty side of the starting grid.
Sam
29th May 2010, 19:33
I think button will lose a spot at the start probably to schumacher. i also think theres a possibility vettel will get beside hamilton, who will get desperate to fend him off and theyll collide
HounslowBusGarage
29th May 2010, 20:39
What? Can’t hear you. SPEAK UP!
Aussie Fan
30th May 2010, 7:11
DAMN NOISY BUSES, YOU HAVE TO YELL TO BE HEARD ABOVE THEM! hahahahaha :-)
Maciek
29th May 2010, 20:59
How about big ups for Kobayashi getting his Sauber to p10!? And how about Liuzzi making a case for being replaced before the season’s out? Bravo Webber, bravo to both Renault drivers and Renault development, Bravo to McLaren improving. Thumbs down for Ferrari and Williams.
All in all, it feels like it could be a good one tomorrow.
HounslowBusGarage
29th May 2010, 22:28
Well yes, but I’m equally impressed by Petrov being less than half a second away from his team leader.
There are lots of possibilities here -Petrov might be learning quickly, Kubica might have had a problem, Renault mnight have made significant improvements etc etc. Who cares? We might have five horse race from here on.
Krosh
29th May 2010, 22:53
Kamui of Toyota times is back.I think that japanese guy can do an excellent job yet, all he needs to take is his inspiration from 2009. In 2009, he was driving as Massa in Sauber ‘crazy’ times ( what happened, Massa? ), and I was really appreciating it. However, he hasn’t managed good positions, this year. Good luck for Kamui.
Veeeight
30th May 2010, 1:16
Totally agree Nude Wizard, Vettel really had the sads and was very unprofessional in his reactions during post quali press conference. I would not expect him to be happy but be fair and show some maturity and sportsmanship. His personality has certainly changed since Webber has been nailing the results- he’s not the first driver to ever react that way but it certainly doesn’t make him any more fans or friends.
John Cousins
30th May 2010, 8:05
Perhaps Vettel’s reliability problems are due to a lack of mechanical sypathy. Maybe he is too rough on the car??? Vettel’s behavior was disgraceful. For a paid professional to behave like that in a press conference is unaccepatble. When Mark is beaten by Seb, he is always mature, polite and behaves in a sportsman-like manner. Pull your head out of your own ass you stuck up little German. (I am not a paid professional, therefore I may say this!)
W154
30th May 2010, 11:27
Well spoken JC. I have read elsewhere that the wunderkind broke his anti-roll bar by rough driving earlier in Q3. Looks like the pressure is really getting to him- he has been reading too much of the pro Vettel media spin from earlier this year which had him winning everything this year.
Frustration on the first lap may lead to collision with LH which would leave a 3 way race between MW JB and MS who just also happen to be drivers who can think and drive at the same time..
Pink Pirelli
30th May 2010, 7:10
As much as I am sure Alonso is rueing his mistake, I am looking forward to another awesome drive from him as he charges up the grid and salvages whatever points he can from such a lowly starting position. Whilst he has certainly been making it hard for himself this season, there is no doubt that he has provided plenty of action for us to cheer. I for one, hope he makes Brundle eat his words ! And I am absolutely stoked about Webber’s pole, fingers crossed that he can make it three on the trot.
Ranilom
30th May 2010, 8:21
It is about time to rename the Red Bull team to..Red Bullies…
Every week end it looks like no matter how the rest manage to improve, they have that special something to demoralize everybody else.
Outstanding!
Electrolite
30th May 2010, 9:27
I felt the commentary was very shabby today.
“I’m begininng to get cynical of Koboyashi’s skill…”
HE’S ONLY FINISHED ONE RACE!! Also he’s got the Sauber into Q3 for the third time and tends to better his much more experienced team mate.
“I can’t help but think Mercedes have turned to Schumacher’s likings”
For the 4325792857585708923872th time Rosberg and BRawn has said they benefit from the same things and have a similiar style! Rosberg was quickest in Q2 at monaco and was competent throughout Turkey qualifying except for getting a lap together the very end – which Schumacher struggled to do as well.
And then when the final few minutes happened – Hamilton vs Red Bulls, and Vettel’s screw up – no hype at all! Itwas expected, admittedly, but still…
Rant over ;)
teeb123456789
30th May 2010, 10:45
Its so ironic how Alonso and Sutil posted quicker times in Q2 than Kobayashi in Q3