Even today, Button and Hamilton played the troublemakers, depriving Vettel of the pole until the last moment before he finally secured it by a few tenths. However, despite a second position offered by Hamilton, the team may regret a misunderstanding between Button and his pit. The Briton came into the pit too early and missed Q3. He only finished 13th.
Note that none of the team members are speaking about the incident that occurred at the end of Q2 between Hamilton and Maldonado.
Lewis Hamilton – 2nd and 2nd:
It was a very eventful hour today in qualifying. It’s very hard to determine exactly what will happen with the weather and therefore which tires to use, and consequently to make a good lap.
« The most complicated part is that the track dries lap after lap. So you’re constantly pushing to find grip but you must be cautious because the rain can return at any corner and easily cause you to lose grip. »
At the end of Q2, I got closer to the two Williams who were slower than me. I had the opportunity to overtake Pastor [Maldonado] in the last corner, but I lost a bit of time. At the end of turn 1, once the checkered flag was crossed, we had contact, but fortunately, I returned to the pits, and the team was able to change the front wing and patch up my right sidepod. They did a great job to enable me to participate in Q3. It’s a chance, so I’ll be in a good position tomorrow to start the Grand Prix.
Jenson Button – 4th and 13th:
Missing Q3 is really unfortunate and is due to a misunderstanding between the team and me…
I had done a good lap, and was in the process of cooling down my tires. I didn’t know there was time left to do another lap… if I had known, I would have kept my pace up…
Visibly, with the track drying out with each lap, it was important to stay on track until the last second. I think I was second or third when I did my lap. It’s a shame not to have had the chance to do another lap…
It’s very disappointing. Especially since in Q1 I was a second faster than everyone else. Our car is clearly one of the fastest here and it’s silly to have to start from 13th place only. I must fulfill my contract now with this. I’m going to have a cup of tea and do everything to win…
Martin Whitmarsh – Director:
«Lewis [Hamilton] did a very good lap in Q3 this afternoon, and thus we will be starting from the front row. On his last lap in Q2, he pushed and overtook Pastor [Maldonado]. He had to make this overtake because it was his last lap and he was faster than the Williams. Then, after the finish line, during their cool-down lap, they touched. Lewis’s car suffered damage but fortunately light enough to be repaired by the team before Q3. At the end of Q3, we narrowly missed pole position, and we can be very satisfied with this starting position.»
« On the other hand, Jenson [Button] had a complicated afternoon. On a drying track that was getting faster and faster, he came into the pits when he could have done one more timed lap… We are still investigating what happened, but we probably should have urged him to push for another lap because he thought he didn’t have enough time to drive… »
«Thus, the drivers who stayed on the track were logically faster and overtook him. He finished 13th overall. It’s a misunderstanding… bad luck, but he is a formidable competitor and will do everything to make up for this delay in the race tomorrow, especially since these very unpredictable conditions generally suit him well.»
