Bottas secures front row grid slot beside Rosberg - Hamilton suffers engine trouble once again
Published by Christine
For the second race in a row, qualifying did not go defending champion Lewis Hamilton’s way. The Brit made his way into Q3 but couldn’t participate due to the same engine problem that caught him out in China. That left Nico Rosberg untroubled in his quest for pole position, the German finishing ahead of Sebastian Vettel in the Ferrari. Vettel’s five place grid drop, however, means that it will be Valtteri Bottas, who completed an impressive lap for Williams, who lines up on the front row of the grid tomorrow.
Elsewhere, Jenson Button and Fernando Alonso missed out on the top ten, but Jenson managed to outqualify his teammate for the first time this season. Max Verstappen scooped ninth place on the grid but Toro Rosso teammate Carlos Sainz missed out on Q3 and had to settle for 11th.
Renault, Sauber and Manor all failed to get out of the first session of qualifying, with Marcus Ericsson bringing up the rear of the field after Rio Haryanto took the fight to the Sauber driver and finished just ahead.
