For the British Grand Prix, Mark Webber secured pole position, placing ahead of his teammate Sebastian Vettel, with Fernando Alonso trailing closely in third, only a tenth of a second behind the pole sitter.
Jenson Button from McLaren found himself more than a second off the pace, while Lewis Hamilton expressed disappointment after qualifying in 10th for his home race.
Webber noted that the front row lockout did not necessarily validate their position amid the controversy surrounding throttle mapping leading up to qualifying. An emergency Technical Working group meeting resulted in cars running with 10% throttle open when the driver lifted off, a decision Red Bull least favored.
“Our team has consistently shown up early and left late over the past three years. What’s transpired in recent months is a culmination of years of groundwork that has led us to this position. It’s really about rule interpretation. We’re still competing, and I doubt the fans care even 1% about these technicalities. Simplifying the rules would allow us to focus on racing,” remarked Webber.
Alonso, who narrowly avoided disaster in Q1 as he drove off into mud yet managed to recover, declared this the best qualifying performance for Ferrari this season: “We are now closer than ever. Today’s pace is promising, and we can apply pressure tomorrow.”
Qualifying began with all cars rushing out due to impending rain forecasts, and soon light rain started to fall. Alonso’s off-track excursion into muddy terrain didn’t hinder his progress.
Many drivers opted to run several laps with a few laps’ worth of fuel during Q1, rather than push for a solitary lap time.
Making his debut for Hispania, Daniel Ricciardo, unfortunately, didn’t take full advantage of the brief dry spells at the start, ending up slower than his teammate Tonio Liuzzi by half a second.
As heavy rain fell with five minutes remaining in Q1, Lotus’ Heikki Kovalainen effectively managed to advance beyond both Toro Rosso cars, which were ultimately eliminated.
In Q2, competitors faced a difficult choice regarding tire selection due to moist sections, particularly around Copse corner, while slick sections were present on the south side of the track.
The rain ceased, allowing the track to improve rapidly, leading to plummeting lap times. Timing became crucial, especially for those on soft tires at the correct moment. Notably, seasoned performers in wet conditions, Michael Schumacher and Rubens Barrichello, did not progress.
Paul di Resta once again outperformed his teammate Adrian Sutil, marking the seventh time in nine races, achieving sixth place, his best starting position in Formula 1 to date. Pastor Maldonado made it into the top ten for the third time this season.
BRITISH GRAND PRIX, Silverstone, Qualifying
1. Mark Webber Red Bull 1m30.399s
2. Sebastian Vettel Red Bull 1m30.431s + 0.032
3. Fernando Alonso Ferrari 1m30.516s + 0.117
4. Felipe Massa Ferrari 1m31.124s + 0.725
5. Jenson Button McLaren 1m31.989s + 1.590
6. Paul di Resta Force India 1m31.929s + 1.530
7. Pastor Maldonado Williams 1m31.933s + 1.534
8. Kamui Kobayashi Sauber 1m32.128s + 1.729
9. Nico Rosberg Mercedes 1m32.209s + 1.810
10. Lewis Hamilton McLaren 1m32.376s + 1.977
11. Adrian Sutil Force India 1m32.617s + 0.977
12. Sergio Perez Sauber 1m32.624s + 0.984
13. Michael Schumacher Mercedes 1m32.656s + 1.016
14. Vitaly Petrov Renault 1m32.734s + 1.094
15. Rubens Barrichello Williams 1m33.119s + 1.479
16. Nick Heidfeld Renault 1m33.805s + 2.165
17. Heikki Kovalainen Lotus 1m34.821s + 3.181
18. Jaime Alguersuari Toro Rosso 1m35.245s + 2.575
19. Sebastien Buemi Toro Rosso 1m35.749s + 3.079
20. Timo Glock Virgin 1m36.203s + 3.533
21. Jarno Trulli Lotus 1m36.456s + 3.786
22. Jerome D’Ambrosio Virgin 1m37.154s + 4.484
23. Tonio Liuzzi HRT 1m37.484s + 4.814
24. Daniel Ricciardo HRT 1m38.059s + 5.389
