British Grand Prix: Qualifying Recap

Hulkenberg claimed the team’s highest grid position of the season in his VF-24, the German steering his way through tricky track conditions throughout qualifying’s three-stage knockout format. Hulkenberg edged his way into Q2 courtesy of a 1:31.929 (P15) lap in Q1 – having had one flying run on a set of Pirelli P Zero Red softs on a drying track after the majority of the field spent most of the session running intermediate tires before late switches to slicks.

Two new sets of soft tires were utilized by Hulkenberg in Q2, his second set netting a best lap of 1:26.847 (P8) to see him comfortably into Q3 and the top 10 shootout at the famed Silverstone circuit. While the home-grown drivers battled it out for pole position, Hulkenberg clocked a superb run of 1:26.338, on his second set of Q3 softs, to clinch P6 on the grid for Sunday’s 52-lap race.

Magnussen exited qualifying in Q1 after narrowly missing the cut – the showery conditions that impacted the opening session frustrating the Dane’s attempts to join his teammate in Q2. Having banked a 1:37.805 on the intermediate, Magnussen swapped onto softs – delivering a 1:32.905 before pitting as showers looked to threaten the final two minutes of the session. The looming rain failed to materialize and track conditions held allowing others to improve their laps bumping Magnussen to P17 and out of qualifying in the bottom five.

The home fans at Silverstone had a day to remember with the top-three spots in qualifying going to British drivers. Mercedes locked out the front-row of the grid with George Russell (1:25.819) beating Lewis Hamilton (1:25.990) to pole position, while Lando Norris claimed third in his McLaren (1:26.030).



Nico Hulkenberg:

“I managed to take the momentum from last race into this week, plus I think the updates we brought to the car yesterday really had an impact and I felt a gain with them straightaway. That’s good news and it’s not always the case, so a big well done to the team. Quali was good; Q1 was a bit too close for comfort with only one lap. With the red flag, we got a little out of sync and maybe it was a bit sketchy, but otherwise it was a good, clean session. I feel good confidence in the car which means I can produce the laps, even if it’s just one.”

Kevin Magnussen:

“We boxed the car after I went off the track as the track was too wet I thought. Unfortunately, I didn’t know it was going to be a short little sprinkle and the track would dry up in minutes so we boxed and didn’t go out again. The track dried up and everyone improved their lap times. We’re looking to move forward of course, but I would’ve liked to be out there at the end to move through because clearly we had the pace, but once again we didn’t manage to get through, not because of pace but because of other things.”

Ayao Komatsu, Team Principal:

“It’s been a pretty eventful day with pretty tricky conditions, but in FP3 I think we made progress learning about car behavior on the intermediates. In Q1 we decided not to run on the inters because we expected it to be dry, so that’s what we did. It was very tricky, we need to review what we did and how we can do it better because we just got through with Nico. Kevin didn’t get through Q1 because he went off but with Nico, we didn’t give ourselves enough margin, so that’s something we need to improve. Moving into dry conditions with Nico, what a fantastic result with P6, and that could’ve been better. He made a mistake on his flying lap in one of the corners so it’s really pleasing with all the hard work from the team getting this upgrade on and it paying off well. It’s an excellent position to start tomorrow, so we’ll see what we can do but for now, I’m happy for the team – amazing work from everyone.”

Today's Data:

Event: Qualifying for the British Grand Prix – Saturday July 6
Location: Silverstone International Circuit, England
Layout: 5.891-kilometer (3.66-mile), 18-turn circuit
Weather: Cloudy / Showers
Air Temps: 12.6 degrees Celsius (54.6 degrees Fahrenheit)
Track Temps: 20 degrees Celsius (68 degrees Fahrenheit)
Team Result: Nico Hulkenberg qualified 6th, Kevin Magnussen qualified 17th

Free Practice 3 (FP3) Rundown:

Hulkenberg: 10th overall (1:39.340), 16 laps 
Magnussen: 17th overall (1:40.539), 21 laps 
Fastest: George Russell of Mercedes (1:37.529)

Q1 Qualifying: 18-mins with all Drivers – Top 15 Advance to Q2

Hulkenberg: 15th overall (1:31.929) – Advanced to Q2
Magnussen: 17th overall (1:32.905) 
Fastest: Lewis Hamilton of Mercedes (1:29.547)

Q2 Qualifying: 15-mins – Top 10 Advance to Q3

Hulkenberg: 8th overall (1:26.847) – Advanced to Q3
Fastest: Lando Norris of McLaren (1:26.559)

Q3 Qualifying: 12-mins – Top 10 Drivers

Hulkenberg: 6th overall (1:26.338) 
Pole Winner: George Russell of Mercedes (1:25.819)