Kvyat walks away unharmed after smashing into barriers in Japan before Rosberg snatches pole position from team-mate Hamilton
Kvyat walks away unharmed after smashing into barriers in Japan before Rosberg snatches pole position from team-mate Hamilton
MATT MORLIDGE IN SUZUKA: Daniil Kvyat was lucky to escape
unharmed after colliding with the barrier and flipping his Red Bull in
qualifying at Suzuka . As Formula One returned to the track for the
first time since Jules Bianchi's devastating crash, it was exactly what
this Japanese Grand Prix didn't need. Kvyat, just 21 years old, lost
control of his car when coming out of the uphill Degners and approaching
the hairpin. The back of his Red Bull hit the wall and was launched
into the air, rolling before grinding to a halt.
Daniil Kvyat was incredibly lucky to escape unharmed after colliding with the barrier and rolling his Red Bull
Kvyat lost control of his car when coming out of the Degners and approaching the hairpin
The 21-year-old collides with the barrier during Saturday's qualifying in Suzuka
The
car was a complete wreck, but his team will have just been delighted to
hear the young Russian reply ‘I’m fine’ as he clambered out of the
crumpled chassis.
Recovery
vehicles which Bianchi clattered into last year in his Marussia,
eventually losing his life in July due to the head injuries sustained,
had to be used again to carry Kvyat’s stricken car off the track. The
conditions were dry on this occasion and this was a driver error, but
the danger of the sport was highlighted once again.
Q3
understandably had to be red flagged, with Mercedes leaving the rest of
the field in their wake. Perhaps Singapore was indeed just a fluke. The
only surprise here, however, was that it was Nico Rosberg denying Lewis
Hamilton a 12th pole in 14 races to head into Sunday’s race in the
perfect position.
Valtteri
Bottas will start on the second row of the grid in his Williams,
closely followed by Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel, who couldn’t quite take
his pace from Marina Bay to Japan. Felipe Massa qualified in fifth.
With
a minute remaining before the session was brought to an end due to
Kvyat’s crash at turn 10, the field could have changed places
drastically, but the Red Bull man’s safety was of course much more
important. His team-mate Daniel Ricciardo exclaimed ‘oh wow, jeepers,’
when shown a replay.
The back of Kvyat's Red Bull hit the wall and was launched into the air, rolling before grinding to a halt
Despite the dramatic shunt, Kvyat revealed he was 'fine' after clambering out of the wrecked Red Bull
Kvyat's Red Bull is moved onto a truck following the shunt which put an end to Saturday's qualifying
Kvyat,
who will start the race in 10th on Sunday, said: ‘It's OK, more
disappointment than pain. A rookie mistake, I put a wheel on the grass.’
Teams
entered qualifying with little data to go off of after Friday’s
practice sessions were almost complete washouts. An hour of FP3 wasn’t
ideal preparation.
Marcus
Ericsson was the first to lose his way around this historic circuit,
spinning his Sauber into the gravel after edging onto the curve. The
next driver to lose his way would disrupt many more of his competitors,
mind.
Yellow
flags were waved as Max Verstappen’s Toro Rosso was parked horizontally
on the track with the majority of the cars at the back of the grid on
better runs. That McLaren are on that list is slightly embarrassing, but
Jenson Button couldn’t get himself out of Q1.
It
wasn’t just the forced slow middle sector that prevented him. The Brit
wasn’t happy with certain instructions and set-ups from his team. Days
like this could be a reason he seems to be heading for the Formula One
exit door.
Mercedes' Nico Rosberg earned pole position for Sunday's Japanese Grand Prix
Rosberg's Mercedes team-mate Lewis Hamilton (pictured) will start in second on Saturday
Valtteri Bottas will start on the second row of the grid in his Williams, closely followed by Felipe Massa
‘In the position we are in, we can’t make any mistakes,’ the 35-year-old said on the radio.
After
the complete electronic failure, Max Verstappen didn’t have a chance to
make it into Q3 and stayed in the pits. The 17-year-old will have to
overtake from P15. Fernando Alonso will try to join him in making his
way up through the field from 14th, as despite his best efforts with
that Honda engine, the Spaniard was half a second off making it into the
final session. Romain Grosjean and Sergio Perez meanwhile, could be
pleased with their efforts to make it.
Rosberg
is 41 points behind Hamilton in the championship but insisted he won’t
be giving up and looked to be tuned in on Saturday. The usual gap
between the pair had been reversed. He set a time of one minute, 32.854
seconds, just over a tenth faster than his British team-mate.
Rosberg (centre) waves with Hamilton (left) and Bottas after taking pole position in the qualifying session
British driver Hamilton talks with Williams' Bottas following the qualifying session in Japan
It is his second successive pole at Suzuka but just the second time the German has started at the front of the grid this season.
‘Very happy, great day today, and a good comeback for the team,’ Rosberg said.
‘It's
fantastic after Singapore to be back to our usual strength. Pretty much
nailed my laps today. Really pleased with the way it went.
Hamilton,
30, will be frustrated with himself for failing to secure a pole
position for the second week in a row. He made a mistake on his first
run, but couldn’t have foreseen what would follow. He said the last lap
‘was looking good’ but conceded he was just glad ‘Kvyat was safe’.
No comments