Max not unhappy with P9 in Chinese GP qualifying
Published on 16 April 2016 by Stefan Meens
Max Verstappen will start the Chinese Grand Prix from ninth. The Dutchman qualified in the top ten for the third consecutive time on a partially damp track. Pole position was once again for Mercedes with Nico Rosberg claiming top spot. Daniel Ricciardo surprised with P2 ahead of Kimi Raikkonen and Sebastian Vettel.
“I'm not unhappy. Of course you always hope for a better result, but we were in the top ten again, which is always important”, said Max to Verstappen.nl. “I definitely see possibilities to get a better result in the race. A lot will depend on strategy so I'm looking forward to an interesting race.”
At the start of Q1, it is dry but the track is partially damp. The drivers need to be particular careful on the start finish straight. Nevertheless, Pascal Wehrlein falls victim to aquaplaning. The Manor driver loses control as he crosses the finish line, narrowly avoids the pit wall before crashing into the barriers.
A fairly lengthy red flag period follows in which the marshals recover the Manor and attempt to 'mop' the wet patches on the straight. After the session is resumed, most drivers head out for a single timed lap. Max does one flying lap that takes him up to ninth and therefore secures his place in Q2.
Rio Haryanto, Jolyon Palmer, Estaban Gutierrez and Kevin Magnussen join Wehrlein in the group that will not progress to the second part of qualifying. A surprise addition to this group is world champion Lewis Hamilton. The Mercedes driver does not set a time and will start the race from the back of the grid.
Q2 is also red flagged. With only a couple of minutes on the clock – and most drivers having set a time – Nico Hulkenberg loses his left front wheel on his out lap. The resulting red flag means that a second flying lap is not possible any more. Both Saubers, McLarens, Romain Grosjean and Felipe Massa miss out on progressing to the final part of qualifying.
Nine drivers contest Q3. After the first timed laps, Max sits in seventh, his team mate Carlos Sainz in P5. Raikkonen takes an early lead but Nico Rosberg claims pole with his second flying lap. Max is able to improve on his time but ends the session in P9, one place behind Sainz.
Chinese Grand Prix - Shanghai International Circuit - Saturday 16 April
RESULST QUALIFYING P No Driver Team Q1 Q2 Q3 Laps 1 6 Nico Rosberg Mercedes 1:37.669 1:36.240 1:35.402 16 2 3 Daniel Ricciardo Red Bull 1:37.672 1:36.815 1:35.917 13 3 7 Kimi Räikkönen Ferrari 1:37.347 1:36.118 1:35.972 13 4 5 Sebastian Vettel Ferrari 1:37.001 1:36.183 1:36.246 10 5 77 Valtteri Bottas Williams 1:37.537 1:36.831 1:36.296 13 6 26 Daniil Kvyat Red Bull 1:37.719 1:36.948 1:36.399 14 7 11 Sergio Perez Force India 1:38.096 1:37.149 1:36.865 15 8 55 Carlos Sainz Toro Rosso 1:37.656 1:37.204 1:36.881 15 9 33 Max Verstappen Toro Rosso 1:38.181 1:37.265 1:37.194 15 10 27 Nico Hulkenberg Force India 1:38.165 1:37.333 10 11 19 Felipe Massa Williams 1:38.016 1:37.347 9 12 14 Fernando Alonso McLaren 1:38.451 1:38.826 11 13 22 Jenson Button McLaren 1:37.593 1:39.093 11 14 8 Romain Grosjean Haas 1:38.425 1:39.830 13 15 9 Marcus Ericsson Sauber 1:38.321 1:40.742 11 16 12 Felipe Nasr Sauber 1:38.654 1:42.430 11 17 20 Kevin Magnussen Renault 1:38.673 9 18 21 Esteban Gutierrez Haas 1:38.770 9 19 30 Jolyon Palmer Renault 1:39.528 9 20 88 Rio Haryanto Manor 1:40.264 9 NC 94 Pascal Wehrlein Manor DNF 2 NC 44 Lewis Hamilton Mercedes DNS 3
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