Portuguese GP 2020
OCTOBER 24, 2020
Qualifying Report - Pipped
© Mercedes-Benz Grand Prix Ltd.
By Dan Knutson
Valtteri Bottas was the fastest driver in all three practice sessions for the Portuguese Grand Prix, and he was fastest all through qualifying until the very last minute when his Mercedes teammate Lewis Hamilton pipped him for the pole.
"I can't tell how hard that was today," Hamilton said if earning his 97th pole.
The line-up for the weekend was: Mercedes – Hamilton and Bottas; Ferrari – Sebastian Vettel and Charles Leclerc; Red Bull Honda – Max Verstappen and Alexander Albon; McLaren Renault – Carlos Sainz and Lando Norris; Renault – Daniel Ricciardo and Esteban Ocon; AlphaTauri Honda – Daniil Kvyat and Pierre Gasly; Racing Point Mercedes – Sergio Perez and Lance Stroll; Alfa Romeo Ferrari – Kimi Raikkonen and Antonio Giovinazzi; Haas Ferrari – Romain Grosjean and Kevin Magnussen; Williams Mercedes – George Russell and Nicolas Latifi.
Bottas clocked the fastest time in Free Practice 3 with a lap of 1:16.654.
QUALIFYING 1
The start of qualifying was delayed by 30 minutes. During FP3 Vettel's Ferrari dislodged a drain cover on the side of the track at Turn 14. Repairs to that cover and checking the rest of them caused the delay.
The ambient temperature at the start of the session was degrees Fahrenheit ( degrees Centigrade) and the track temperature was degrees Fahrenheit ( degrees Centigrade).
All 20 drivers headed out immediately. Verstappen set the pace with a 1:17.700. Bottas beat that with his 1:17.064. Hamilton slotted into second with a time of 1:17.114.
Perez was third and Leclerc fourth with eight minutes remaining. Then Verstappen dipped below the 1:17.00 mark to grab the lead only to be dislodged by Hamilton who turned a 1:16.828.
When there were three minutes remaining in Q1, Giovinazzi was 15th and on the cutoff line. Vettel was 14th and Grosjean was 16th.
The five drivers who were eliminated at the end of Q1 were: Raikkonen, Giovinazzi, Grosjean, Magnussen and Latifi.
The fastest 15 drivers who moved on to Q2 were: Hamilton, Verstappen, Bottas, Gasly, Perez, Leclerc, Albon, Vettel, Norris, Ricciardo, Sainz, Stroll, Ocon, Kvyat and Russell.
QUALIFYING 2
Stroll and Perez were the first out in the 15-minute Q2.
The McLaren and Ferrari drivers were on the medium compound Pirelli slicks as was Verstappen. The tires the drivers use to set their fastest times in Q2 are the tires they use to start the race.
Bottas clocked a 1:16.466 to take the lead ahead of Perez, Norris and Verstappen at the 10 minute mark. Hamilton was 13th after getting held up by Vettel.
Hamilton's next run shot him up to second place, 0.358 of a second slower than Bottas. Verstappen, now on the softs grabbed third.
Tenth and on the bubble with two minutes to go was Ricciardo, and Albon was ninth while Ocon was 11th.
The five drivers who were eliminated at the end of Q2 were: Ocon, Stroll, Kvyat, Russell and Vettel.
The fastest 10 drivers who moved on to Q3 were: Bottas, Hamilton, Verstappen, Perez, Sainz, Norris, Gasly, Leclerc, Albon and Ricciardo (who had a spin on his last lap).
QUALIFYING 3
Q3 lasted 12 minutes. Bottas got things rolling with a lap of 1:16.986. Hamilton's 1:17.033 put him second.
Verstappen took third ahead of Leclerc, Perez, Sainz, Albon and Norris. Gasly and Ricciardo had yet to clock times with five minutes remaining.
The mechanics were replacing the rear wing that Ricciardo damaged in his spin.
Hamilton and Bottas tried the medium tires for his last run. Hamilton took the lead with a 1:16.934. Bottas beat that with a 1:16.754.
Hamilton did another lap and grabbed the pole with a 1:16.652.
The top 10 qualifiers were: Hamilton, Bottas, Verstappen, Leclerc, Perez, Albon, Sainz, Norris, Gasly and Ricciardo.