Qualifying Report - Times Two

Nico Rosberg won the pole for the Russian Grand Prix for the second time, while his Mercedes teammate Lewis Hamilton slid off the track on his final attempt at the prime grid spot.

FP3 earlier in the day had been stopped after Carlos Sainz had a big accident at Turn 13 in his Toro Rosso.

Toro Rosso put out the following statement: "Following Carlos Sainz's accident during FP3 today in Sochi, the driver is perfectly conscious and was able to talk to the extrication team. Once out of the car he was taken to the circuit Medical Centre, where he underwent an initial assessment of his condition.

"He has now been taken by air ambulance to the Sochi Hospital 4. Investigations on the reasons for the accident will take place once the car is back in the team's garage."

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 set a time of 1:38.566 for others to shoot for.

The order was Rosberg, Hamilton, Vettel, Grosjean and Raikkonen. Nasr was 15th and on the bubble ahead of Perez. But that all changed in the final minutes.

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

The four drivers eliminated at the end of Q1 were: Alonso, Ericsson, Stevens and Merhi.

QUALIFYING 2

Rosberg again set the pace with a 1:38.335. He and the rest of the drivers were on Pirelli's super soft slicks. Hamilton then slammed in a 1:37.672. But Rosberg beat that with a 1:37.500.

The Ferrari drivers did not make an initial run in the session. Nor did the Williams boys. The headed out in the final minutes, but Massa had problems and was slow.

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

The five drivers eliminated at the end of Q2 were: Kvyat, Nasr, Button, Maldonado and Massa.

"The tires are not ready," said Kvyat.

QUALIFYING 3

Raikkonen was the first out in the 12-minute Q3.

The order was Rosberg, Hamilton, Bottas, Vettel and Raikkonen with five minutes to go. Rosberg had set a 1:37.113.

Hamilton slid off at Turn 13 on his attempt to beat Rosberg. He headed for the pits.

So Rosberg won the pole for the second time in Sochi.

The top 10 qualifiers at the end of Q3 were: Rosberg, Hamilton, Bottas, Vettel, Raikkonen, Hulkenberg, Perez, Grosjean, Verstappen and Ricciardo.