Hamilton snatches pole in Spain as Red Bull shine - Verstappen shows his worth and Ferrari struggle
Published by Christine
There were several surprises in qualifying for the Spanish Grand Prix, starting with the fact that Felipe Massa dropped out in Q1, aborting his second flying lap and settling for 19th on the grid. Q2 was slightly more predictable.
Daniil Kvyat was left floundering in 13th, whilst Toro Rosso teammate Carlos Sainz got into Q3. McLaren and Force India were also scrapping for midfield positions – however, Nico Hülkenberg was outshone by teammate Sergio Pérez who improved into the top ten, and Jenson Button suffered a similar fate when Fernando Alonso dragged his Honda into the third and final session too.
Alonso could do no better than tenth, however, with Pérez ahead of him, leaving the fight for the front positions to others. Max Verstappen, in his first qualifying for Red Bull, had been second in the first two sessions and looked odds on to split the Mercedes again, but Hamilton improved to snatch pole position, Rosberg second and Daniel Ricciardo crept into third at the last minute. Both Red Bulls finished ahead of Ferrari, however, who were struggling on the aero-circuit of Catalunya.
