China 2011 - Qualifying - Pole position for the Chinese race is up for grabs
Published by Christine
Two races, two pole positions, and Sebastian Vettel will be looking for a third. The real story does not lie with him though, but further down the grid.
HRT managed to qualify last weekend, and don't appear to have regressed any so look set to do the same in China. The question is, will they manage to beat Virgin? Richard Branson's team seem to be getting slower as the others continue to improve.
Can Mercedes keep up the pace, and can Toro Rosso make it through to the top ten shootout? These are all questions we will get answered over the course of the next couple of hours.
Qualifying is due to begin at 7am GMT+1 with the BBC and Factbyte Factbox coverage starting an hour earlier.
Statistics
Shanghai International Circuit, Saturday
16℃
- Low 8℃
- Humidity 42%
White cloud
| Pos | Driver | Team | Time | Laps |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | S Vettel | Red Bull | 1:34.558 | 21 |
| 2 | M Webber | Red Bull | 1:34.806 | 17 |
| 3 | F Alonso | Ferrari | 1:34.913 | 15 |
| 4 | N Rosberg | Mercedes | 1:34.923 | 17 |
| 5 | J Button | McLaren | 1:34.979 | 17 |
Predictions
For the last two races, I've had a little bit of fun in the FBFB comparing Paul di Resta's qualifying performance to Adrian Sutil's. The rookie Force India driver has outqualified his more experienced teammate on both occasions, and the pie chart that creates does amuse me. That leads me to today's question.
