F1 Championship, Mercedes driver Nico Rosberg took the pole position for the Belgian Grand Prix after holding off a determined test from his Mercedes rival Lewis Hamilton in qualifying on Saturday.
In what could be a topsy turvy F1 Championship this season, Mercedes driver Nico Rosberg took the pole position for the Belgian Grand Prix after holding off a determined test from his Mercedes rival Lewis Hamilton in qualifying on Saturday.
The Brit was was ahead of Rosberg on the first two time splits of his final lap but all of a sudden, his car drifted back allowing the German to clinch a fourth straight pole in succession and sixth in the past seven races. In his entire qualifying, Rosberg clocked 2 minutes, 5.591 seconds under some serious conditions, with the Spa track drenched following a heavy downpour.
The race heads in for a close one as both the teammates sharing a ‘cold vibe’ amongst them! Lewis Hamilton finished in 2:05.819 whereas former F1 champion Sebastian Vettel got a much-needed boost with the third quickest time.
Ferrari disappointed with their performances yet again as two-time champion Fernando Alonso came in fourth in his Ferrari with Aussie Daniel Ricciardo, the only non-Mercedes driver to win a race so far this season, just ahead.
The 2014-15 F1 season has seen the Mercedes drivers lead the pack with Hamilton winning five, Rosberg four and Red Bull’s Ricciardo clinching two in an impressive first season. Even with great engine and power surge, the 2008 champion was plagued by technical problems in his car.
Mercedes could not solve the brake problem in his car but Hamilton is still confident of landing the top honours in the Race Day. Sebastian Vettel who was supreme in the previous 2 seasons, somehow kept a low key.
The German driver’s victory at Spa last year was the first of nine successive wins that took the former towards an F1 title. But on current performances, he is languishing in sixth place overall in the standings and a podium finish would brand his season a success. For Vettel’s record, he has won 39 GPs that includes a record-equalling 13 last season and also clinching 45 pole positions. But, sadly for his fans and himself, Seb Vettle has only two podium spots this term -third in Canada and Malaysia.
The Spa circuit is not easy by any standards and the drivers will have a rough time especially if the rain gods keep the pouring on! With Nico Rosberg gunning for yet another numero uno spot, rival and teammate Lewis Hamilton will make sure, he remains hot on his ‘wheels’!
