Rosberg claims sixth straight pole at Yas Marina
| Pos. | Driver | Team | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Nico Rosberg | Mercedes | 1:40.237 |
| 2 | Lewis Hamilton | Mercedes | +0.377 |
| 3 | Kimi Raikkonen | Ferrari | +0.814 |
| 4 | Sergio Perez | Force India | +0.947 |
| 5 | Daniel Ricciardo | Red Bull Racing | +1.207 |
| 6 | Valtteri Bottas | Williams | +1.419 |
| 7 | Nico Hulkenberg | Force India | +1.449 |
| 8 | Felipe Massa | Williams | +1.522 |
| 9 | Daniil Kvyat | Red Bull Racing | +1.696 |
| 10 | Carlos Sainz | Toro Rosso | +2.471 |
Mercedes’ Nico Rosberg claims his sixth consecutive pole position at the Yas Marina Circuit in Abu Dhabi, ahead of team-mate Lewis Hamilton by almost four tenths. Kimi Raikkonen came in third, with Sergio Perez fourth.
For Nico Rosberg that’s a massive comeback in the final Grand Prix weekends of the year, and his sixth straight pole places him only two away from Ayrton Senna’s all-time record.
"Primarily I would just like to win tomorrow to give my crew a great end to the season and a reason to party," said Nico afterwards. "Of course, whatever we learn this year as well helps into next year as well - so it would be great to finish on a high."
Lewis Hamilton stated he had been struggling with the car all weekend long, but ultimately "Nico was just really quick today and he did a great job in Q3."
Third placed Kimi Raikkonen made his best qualifying of the year after problem-free practices to finish third and secure a second row start aiming high for tomorrow’s race.
It was quite the opposite for the Finn’s team-mate Sebastian Vettel, as he and Ferrari miscalculated and shockingly went out in Q1. Vettel said, "as a team we didn’t do the right decision today and that has a big consequence. But the race is tomorrow."
He was joined in early elimination by Fernando Alonso, who suffered a puncture; while Jenson Button managed to go into Q2 and nearly got into Q3.
Meanwhile, it was a great fifth place for Daniel Ricciardo, as the race line’s up to a great battle between Red Bull, Force India and Williams. And for Toro Rosso, Carlos Sainz was tenth - he wins the qualifying battle against team-mate Max Verstappen.
