Saturday: Webber secures the 200th pole position with a Renault engine
While Sebastian Vettel seemed poised to easily secure his 35th career pole position, it was ultimately his teammate Mark Webber who had the honor of giving Renault the 200th pole from one of its engines in Formula 1. However, while the Australian's priority will indeed be to stay in the lead until turn 4, the double World Champion hopes to capitalize on the straights of the first sector.
Mark Webber – 7th and Pole position:
« It was a tight session for all of us. I think that during the session, some had different balance issues with different types of tires. I’m happy with my lap, it was solid and it’s good to take the pole. It’s a great place to start the race. I will look to get a great exit from the first corner, it’s important since there are two very long straights after it. »
Sebastian Vettel – 1st and 2nd:
Overall, we can be very happy with this result. We were quite fast in the first two phases of qualifying and had a good start in Q3. On the last attempt, I had to slow down at the start of my lap because Massa was there, it wasn’t his fault, but I had to slow down. However, the second lap in Q3 wasn’t good enough. I lost time in the second sector, which seemed good to us all weekend, but when the track got faster, I couldn’t take advantage, so I lost a bit of time, but 2nd is a good starting position. There are some long straights near the start, so it could be interesting tomorrow.
