Sebastian Vettel headed a Ferrari 1-2 in qualifying, with Mercedes off the pace. Hamilton suffered issues with tyres and was unable to get a clean lap together. Meanwhile Di Resta, standing in for unwell Massa, went 19th.
Q1
The biggest talking point in Q1 was Di Resta standing in for an unwell Massa. The Brazilian had felt dizzy in FP2 but was passed to take part in the final practice session. However, when the symptoms returned he ended his running and Di Resta was asked to step in.
Having not driven in Formula One in 4 years and never having driven the current cars, he could only manage 19th. Although he was only 8 tenths off his teammate, Stroll.
Magnussen was frustrated to not make it through to Q2, having set an identical lap time to Ocon – who made it into the next session as he set the time first.
Out in Q1:
- Magnussen
- Stroll
- Wehrlein
- Di Resta
- Ericsson
Q2
Hamilton was quickest in Q2, but the session wasn’t without fault. He struggled to get a clean lap together and had to go out again in the final minutes.
Hulkenberg was strong again for Renault, ending the session 6th, ahead of Ricciardo. McLaren were also very pleased to get both drivers through to the final session, with Alonso and Vandoorne going 8th and 9th.
Out in Q2:
- Palmer
- Ocon
- Kvyat
- Perez
- Grosjean
Q3
On the opening runs, the track record was broken multiple times but it was Vettel who secured provisional pole with a 1:16.276. Hamilton backed out of his lap after a mistake at turn 4, he complained of vibrations from the tyres and pitted.
Going out early for his final run, Hamilton still complained about the tyres but was able to get a lap together. However, it was only good enough for 3rd. Raikkonen then came out and beat both Mercedes drivers for 2nd, behind his teammate Vettel. This left Bottas third and Hamilton fourth.
Verstappen outqualified Ricciardo, with the Red Bulls 5th and 6th. Hulkenberg did finish the session 7th but he will drop to 12th with a gearbox penalty. McLaren finished with Alonso 8th and Vandoorne 9th, with the Toro Rosso of Sainz 10th.
Q3 Results:
- Vettel
- Raikkonen
- Bottas
- Hamilton
- Verstappen
- Ricciardo
- Hulkenberg
- Alonso
- Vandoorne
- Sainz
The Grid
Hulkenberg has a 5-place grid penalty so will drop from 7th to 12th. Aside from this, the grid will be the same as qualifying position. Provisional grid:
Vettel, Raikkonen; Bottas, Hamilton; Verstappen, Ricciardo; Alonso, Vandoorne; Sainz, Palmer; Ocon, Hulkenberg; Kvyat, Perez; Grosjean, Magnussen; Stroll, Wehrlein; Di Resta, Ericsson.