08
October
2016
|
10:35
Europe/Amsterdam

2016 Japanese Grand Prix, Qualifying

2016 Japanese Grand Prix, Qualifying

NICO ROSBERG CLAIMS POLE FOR MERCEDES ON SOFTS
IN COOL AND OVERCAST CONDITIONS

THE TOP 10 ON THE GRID WILL ALL START
ON SOFT TYRES

TWO STOPS ARE LIKELY FOR THE RACE,
WITH VARIABLE WEATHER POSSIBLE

Suzuka, October 8, 2016 – Mercedes driver Nico Rosberg has claimed pole position for the Japanese Grand Prix, setting a time of 1m30.647s on the soft tyre: the fastest time of the weekend so far that was around two seconds faster than last year’s pole.

Two stops seem set to be the most probable strategy for the grand prix tomorrow, although this will depend on track and weather conditions. Following some overnight rain, qualifying remained completely dry; however damp conditions at the start of FP3 meant that the Cinturato intermediate and full wet was also briefly used today – meaning that all five tyres were run.

Everyone used just the soft tyre from Q2 onwards. In Q3 the drivers did two runs (apart from Force India and Haas), timing the final laps for the very end of the session in order to benefit from track evolution.

Tomorrow is expected to stay dry but the possibility of showers remains, with similar track temperatures to the 26 degrees centigrade seen today.

Paul Hembery, Pirelli motorsport director: “Track temperatures were cooler than they had been yesterday, which affected tyre behaviour, along with the overnight rain that washed whatever rubber had been laid on the track yesterday away. The superior speed of the soft tyre meant that it was the automatic choice for qualifying and so the top 10 will all be starting on this compound tomorrow. Where they go from here in terms of strategy will be very interesting, with the whole field closely matched in terms of speed and the possibility of cool and variable weather.”

How the tyres behaved today:
Hard: Used by two drivers at Q1 start as an installation. Mandatory set for the race.
Medium: Mercedes and Red Bull got through Q1 with medium only, not used thereafter.
Soft: The most popular tyre choice for Suzuka, with a 1.3 second per lap advantage.

Free practice 3 - top three times

Rosberg1m32.092sSoft new
Ricciardo1m32.394sSoft new
Vettel1m32.731sSoft new

Qualifying top 10

Rosberg1m30.647sSoft new
Hamilton1m30.660sSoft new
Raikkonen1m30.949sSoft new
Vettel1m31.028sSoft new
Verstappen1m31.178sSoft new
Ricciardo1m31.240sSoft new
Perez1m31.961sSoft new
Grosjean1m31.961sSoft new
Hulkenberg1m32.142sSoft new
Gutierrez1m32.547sSoft new

Most laps by compound so far

HardSainz24 laps
MediumPalmer24
SoftKvyat22
 Magnussen22
IntermediateGrosjean2
 Gutierrez2
WetBottas1
 Magnussen1
 Massa1
 Palmer1

Best time by compound so far

HardHamilton1m33.475s
MediumRosberg1m31.858s
SoftRosberg1m30.647s

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