Rosberg on pole after Hamilton hopes go up in smoke
Mercedes driver takes pole for Hungary Grand Prix as teammate's bad luck continues
World championship leader Nico Rosberg once again took full advantage of Mercedes teammate Lewis Hamilton’s misfortune on Saturday by claiming pole position for the Hungarian Grand Prix.
We’ll have to replace the engine and gearbox, but with that penalty it’s a good thing [for a gearbox change]
The 29-year-old German, who leads Hamilton by 14 points in their duel for the drivers’ title, cashed in after the luckless Briton’s car burst into flames in the opening minutes of a dramatic qualifying session.
Rosberg clocked a best lap of one minute and 22.715 seconds to claim his sixth pole of the year and the 10th of his career in an hour that saw intense heat, at the start, followed by dark clouds and rain in the final minutes.
Reading the weather conditions in advance, Rosberg’s was first car out in the third qualifying and ran wide at turn one shortly before Danish rookie Kevin Magnussen flew off and into the barriers at the same place.
That caused red flags and the session was halted for five minutes, resuming in damp, but drying conditions as the hot sunshine resumed – a scenario that saw a series of drivers in serious contention for pole.
Sebastian Vettel clocked a best lap of 1:23.201 that put him clear at the top in the final seconds, but Rosberg responded to outpace him by 0.486 seconds to secure prime position.