Hungarian GP 2015

JULY 25, 2015

Qualifying Report - Place Perfect

Lewis Hamilton, Hungarian GP 2015
© The Cahier Archive

 

It is difficult to overtake around the twisty Hungaroring, so pole position is the perfect place to start the Hungarian Grand Prix. That's the spot Lewis Hamilton will be in. His Mercedes teammate Nico Rosberg qualified second.

The ambient temperature at the start of the session was 90 degrees Fahrenheit (32 degrees Centigrade) and the track temperature was 128 degrees Fahrenheit (54 degrees Centigrade). The humidity was 41 percent.

The line-up for the weekend was: Mercedes - Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg. Red Bull Renault - Daniel Ricciardo and Daniil Kvyat. Williams Mercedes - Felipe Massa and Valtteri Bottas. Ferrari - Sebastian Vettel and Kimi Raikkonen. McLaren Honda - Fernando Alonso and Jenson Button. Force India Mercedes - Nico Hulkenberg and Sergio Perez. Toro Rosso Renault - Max Verstappen and Carlos Sainz. Lotus Mercedes - Romain Grosjean and Pastor Maldonado. Marussia Ferrari - Will Stevens and Roberto Merhi. Sauber - Marcus Ericsson and Felipe Nasr.

Qualifying 1

Rosberg was the first to exit the pit lane. His teammate was close behind him on the track, but when it came to lap times, Hamilton posted a 1:24.293 and Rosberg a 1:25.262.

6 minutes into the session, Vettel took second with a 1:24.901. Rosberg radioed in that his car had too much oversteer.

8 minutes into the session, Ricciardo moved into second place with a 1:24.631.

With 5 minutes to go, the top six were: Hamilton, Ricciardo, Button, Vettel and Rosberg.

With 3 minutes remaining in the session, Bottas popped to the top using the soft compound tires.

With 2 minutes remaining in the session, Rosberg was now in first ahead of Vettel. Now Button was 15th and Alonso 16th.

Right at the end, Hamilton went ahead with a 1:22.890. Alonso improved, pushing Button down to 16th.

The top 10 at the end of Q1 were: Hamilton, Rosberg, Vettel, Kvyat, Raikkonen, Bottas, Maldonado, Massa, Verstappen and Hulkenberg.

The five drivers eliminated at the end of Q1 were: Button, Ericsson, Nasr, Merhi and Stevens.

Qualifying 2

First out for the 15-minute Q2 was Vettel, although three minutes had expired before he did so. He clocked a 1:23.168.

With 8 minutes remaining in the session, Alonso parked his car at the entrance to the pits. That brought out the red flags as he tried to push the car into the pits

The top six were: Vettel, Raikk ‚ ¡nen, Rosberg, Verstappen, Massa and Bottas. Only eight of the 15 drivers had set a lap time.

With 7 minutes remaining, the session was restarted.

Hamilton clocked a 1:22.285. Verstappen was 10th and moved up to ninth. Then Grosjean grabbed 10th and pushed Hulkenberg down to 11th.

The top 10 at the end of Q2 were: Hamilton, Rosberg, Vettel, Ricciardo, Raikkonen, Bottas, Kvyat, Massa, Verstappen and Grosjean.

The five drivers eliminated at the end of Q2 were: Hulkenberg, Sainz, Perez, Maldonado and Alonso.

Qualifying 3

Rosberg was out first, setting a lap in 1:22.766, and then Hamilton did a 1:22.408.

Nobody came close to Hamilton as Vettel was third with a 1:22.975.

So the top 10 at the end of the runs were: Hamilton, Rosberg, Vettel, Ricciardo, Raikkonen, Bottas, Kvyat, Massa, Grosjean and Verstappen.

Now, in the final laps, Rosberg improved to a 1:22.595, not enough to beat Hamilton who clocked a 1:22.020.

The top 10 qualifiers at the end of Q3 remained: Hamilton, Rosberg, Vettel, Ricciardo, Raikkonen, Bottas, Kvyat, Massa, Grosjean and Verstappen.