F1: Malaysian GP qualifying – Mercedes’ Hamilton takes pole; Rosberg in P3
Ryan Joseph Ramos March 28, 2015Don’t look now, but Ferrari’s trying to spoil the party. Lewis Hamilton will start the Malaysian Grand Prix on Sunday in pole position, after edging out Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel. Mercedes teammate Nico Rosberg took P3 on the starting grid after a rainy qualifying session.
The three Q3 times for the top 3 qualifiers were close: Hamilton posted 1:49.834, Vettel 1:49.908, and Rosberg 1:50.299. Hamilton actually set that time on his initial flying lap and never actually got to improve it, allowing Vettel to edge a bit too close for comfort. In the end, though, Hamilton was able to clinch his 40th career F1 pole position.
Meanwhile, surrendering P2 to the Ferrari means ending a streak of 12 consecutive front-row starts for Rosberg.
“I just didn’t drive well enough and I’m annoyed by that,” says the German driver. “Third place isn’t good for tomorrow but it is what it is.”
Looks like it’s not going to be all Mercedes all the time as some have feared, though. Ferrari has shown in the opener that it has great pace this year and things should be more competitive than in 2014, which was dominated by Mercedes. Getting to P2 gives Vettel a good chance to split the Mercedes and sneak in to battle for the race win.
Following Rosberg, the Red Bulls of Daniel Ricciardo and Daniil Kvyat line up at P4 and P5, respectively. The surprising Max Verstappen of Toro Rosso took P6, followed by the Williams of Felipe Massa, Romain Grosjean in his Lotus, Valterri Bottas in the other Williams, and Marcus Ericsson of Sauber. The other Ferrari, driven by Kimi Raikkonen, got messed up in the timing and was not able to get in another Q2 run before the rain poured. This ended up with the Finn getting edged out of Q3 and will start at P11 on the grid.
Hamilton seems undaunted by the Ferrari challenge this season. “I’m happy to see Ferrari are doing really well and to be so close,” says the defending world champion.
Looks like it’s going to be a thrilling race at the Sepang Circuit tomorrow. Don’t forget to check back here for the latest race results and recaps!
