2014 British Grand Prix – The grid: Rosberg avoids the rain of surprises

After the qualifying session that took place on Saturday, for which you can read the summary on Motorsinside.com, the editorial team offers you a recap of the starting grid.

Several things to note: first, the penalties for Esteban Gutiérrez (-10 places), following his unsafe release during the Austrian Grand Prix, and for Max Chilton (-5 places) after changing his gearbox during this British weekend.

Pastor Maldonado having been excluded from qualifications, due to an insufficient amount of fuel in the Lotus’s tank, will start in 20th position since both Caterhams, having not surpassed the 107% mark of the Q1 best time, were reinstated by the stewards.

The tires

If there is no rain at the start, the top 10 drivers will be required to use the medium (white) tires with which they set their best time in Q2. The others will have the choice of tires. Nevertheless, once again, this race should favor two-stop strategies. The question remains whether those who can will choose to get rid of the hard (orange) tires first.

But if the rain doesn’t fall at the time of takeoff, it could sweep away all the reflections during the race and spice up the choices of some and others.

**The forces present**

As usual this season, and even if one of them starts on the third row, it’s hard not to imagine that, if everything goes well, the Mercedes will be heading for a one-two finish, with a certain advantage for Nico Rosberg starting from pole position. However, recent weeks have shown that the Brackley cars can be fallible.

But, ultimately, the game of wet qualifications pushed many of their serious competitors into the limbo of the grid: exit Daniel Ricciardo’s Red Bull (8th), but especially the Ferraris and the Williams. Only Sebastian Vettel (2nd) will have a race pace that could – somewhat – put pressure on the Silver Arrows.

The grid, shaken up, is nonetheless promising and allows for the possibility of an exciting race with a highly competitive midfield eager to nail the start and execute overtakes. However, this relentless climb by the Williams and Ferraris might face a challenging weather reality, similar to the entire field.

Such a scenario would certainly be appreciated by the surprise drivers of these qualifications, starting with Romain Grosjean and Jules Bianchi who will make up an astonishing sixth row but won’t be able to do much if the track dries up.