Rosberg starts on pole at Silverstone
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In yesterday’s qualifying there was drama for Lewis Hamilton who aborted his final lap, opting to head to the pits instead. That means Hamilton will start from sixth on the grid, with Red Bull’s Sebastian Vettel second fastest, although he was 1.7 seconds adrift of Rosberg’s quickest time.
Jenson Button managed to qualify his McLaren third in front of his home crowd on a showery day, while Nico Hulkenberg was fourth in the Force India ahead of Kevin Magnussen in the second McLaren.
I knew I could go quicker if it was drier. Nico Rosberg
Sergio Perez will start from seventh with Daniel Ricciardo, Daniil Kvyat and Jean-Eric Vergne completing the top ten. When asked why he did not complete his lap, Hamilton replied: “I don’t know, I don’t have much of an answer. I just decided not to do the lap.”
Rosberg said: “We came to a general conclusion to just go out and have a look, because if you don’t go out you don’t have a chance.
“I never thought it would be quicker. What made it was the last sector because the rest of the lap was slower, but I knew I had a chance to go quicker because I had lost three or four seconds [there] on the previous lap so I knew I could go quicker if it was drier.”
Meanwhile, Red Bull boss Christian Horner was thrilled to see Vettel set the second quickest time, saying: “Seb did a great job to get second. We didn’t think the track was going to be better.”
Ferrari and Williams had terrible qualifying sessions, failing to get through Q1. Fernando Alonso will start from 17th on the grid behind the two Williamses, with Kimi Raikkonen in 19th.
So what about the Brits chances on their home track?
Lewis Hamilton’s seven races in the British Grand Prix have yielded a fair bit of success. He has three podium finishes and has been out of the top 10 just once in seven visits. Although he hasn’t had the pleasure of being drowned in cheap champagne on a windy podium in Silverstone since 2010 his form is still considerably better than most Brits.
- In the last 25 years a Brit has raced in the British Grand Prix at Silverstone on 90 occasions
- 31 times, they did not finish the race
- And on just 14 occasions did they make the podium, notching seven wins
- 53 per cent of the time the British driver either finished 10th or worse or didn’t even complete the race
- Only once in the last 25 years have we had a British one-two when David Coulthard led Eddie Irvine home in 1999
Hamilton has more success here than those Brit stats would suggest , however at the odds, team-mate Nico Rosberg is a far more attractive proposition at 6/4.
Taking Hamilton’s average points tally per race into account, Silverstone ranks somewhere in the middle so it’s far from his favourite stretch of road. At the British Grand Prix he averages 12.29 points a race, which, although is still an impressive haul, ranks below Canada, Malaysia and Monaco in terms of Hamilton’s average success.
The pressure of being at home might weigh a touch heavy on the Mercedes driver’s shoulders and Rosberg is yet to finish outside the first two this season, which might just give him the edge in terms of punting.
Jenson Button is 33/1 to win the British Grand Prix and 5/1 to make the podium, but it would make sense to steer clear of those odds as Button’s form around the track makes Maureen from Driving School look like an accomplished driver.
Button is, let’s not forget, a former World Champion, but he has never graced the podium at Silverstone in 14 attempts and it’s hard to see that stat changing this weekend. His best finish was fourth (in 2010 and 2004) but 57 per cent of the time he has finished 10th or worse, so it wouldn’t be a surprise to see Button out of the points again at his home track.
Silverstone is actually one of Button’s worst tracks in terms of performance. Using the 2014 scoring system for all races, he would have averaged just 4.14 points there per race which is well below the other tracks he has visited 14 times or more in his career. Japan is his most favourable circuit, closely followed by Malaysia and Brazil, where he racks up on average more than double the points he wins in Britain.
So on Sunday grab yourself a stein of Weissbier and trade the roast dinner in for a couple of bratwursts as you cheer on Rosberg. Your stomach probably won’t thank you, but your bank balance just might.
Hamilton is 9/4 to win the British Grand Prix on Sunday, while Rosberg is 8/13 to come out on top.
Suggested Bets…..
Jensen Button podium finish @ 9/2
Gossip Column…..
Bernie Ecclestone reveals he has held talks that could see him buy back Formula 1. Daily Express
Technical trouble is not the only thing on Lewis Hamilton’s mind during the British Grand Prix at Silverstone this weekend. In addition to his oil leak on Friday, the former world champion is suffering with hay fever caused by pollen in the air around rural Northamptonshire. inautonews.com
Ferrari have refused to comment on a report in Italy that engine chief Luca Marmorini has left the team. Sky Sports
Pirelli will test low-profile tyres on the Lotus at next week’s in-season test in order to see what a Formula 1 car will look like with tyres closer to those of a road car. ESPN
Former world champion Kimi Raikkonen admits he is likely to retire from Formula 1 at the end of 2015, when his current deal with Ferrari runs out. Autosport.com
Fernando Alonso says he is so focused on doing what he can to put Ferrari into a winning position next year that he has given little thought to extending his contract beyond 2016, despite rumours of a return to McLaren. ESPN
Romain Grosjean is still dreaming of winning races and becoming a world champion – and he will not hesitate to leave Lotus to realise that goal. “I’ve been here for a little bit and I know the team very well,” he says. “On the other hand I want to win races as well, so things are open.“PlanetF1.com
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