Qualification: In Germany, Webber secures his first pole position

Mark Webber secured the first pole position of his Formula 1 career this afternoon at the 2009 German Grand Prix, the ninth round of the season. At the Nurburgring, the Red Bull driver took advantage of challenging weather conditions to navigate through the raindrops and outperform Barrichello, Button, and his teammate Vettel.

The German Grand Prix qualifying was eventful. Rain made its appearance in the second part, challenging the efforts of some drivers and highlighting certain talents, such as Force India’s Adrian Sutil. The German, in his home race, secured an impressive 7th place and achieved the best qualifying result for the Indian team.

When Q1 begins, the weather is uncertain, with about a 60% chance of rain. It is still cool, 15°C in the air, 22°C on the track. The Brawn GP team is struggling in such cold temperatures. The timesheets directly reflect this with the underperformances of Button and Barrichello.

After a few minutes, the Toro Rossos also seem to be in trouble. Bourdais chose the settings found by his teammate and cannot properly control his STR4. He is unable to move out of the last place.

Adrian Sutil, for his part, knows the circuit. He is performing well, just like the Red Bulls and the two world champions Alonso and Hamilton. Both men are in the top 5 every lap.

The first part of the qualifying session is almost over when the helicopter captures the first raindrops on its camera. There are three minutes left in Q1, but the rain prevents any improvements. The eliminated drivers are Kubica, Buemi, Fisichella, Glock, and Bourdais. The French driver had gone out again at the end of the session for a final run but went straight on due to brake problems and couldn’t improve.

During the break, the rain intensifies. At the restart, there’s a traffic jam. Everyone wants to exit as soon as possible for a lap on slick tires. In the end, the drivers get in each other’s way during their out lap. Nakajima spins off in a run-off area. Behind him, it’s Massa and Fisichella who make mistakes.

At the end of the first lap, everyone returns to the pits to switch to rain tires, except one. Webber tries a gamble by staying on the track. The strategy does not work, and the Australian in the Red Bull cannot set a decent time. He eventually comes in to change tires.

The 15 drivers on track quickly dry up the racing lines as the rain slows down. The lap times improve, and the drivers go back in to switch to intermediates. In these conditions, certain drivers stand out, notably Alonso and Sutil. There are five minutes left in this second part of the qualifications. The 15 men, staggered, complete their fast laps with slick tires. Very quickly, Webber and Barrichello take the lead. In drying conditions, Sutil clocks the fastest time in Q2 for Force India. Piquet posts the second fastest time, while Alonso spins during his fast lap and cannot improve.

Kovalainen also makes a mistake. He goes wide and lightly touches the wall with the sides. He returns to the pit, shuts off the engine. The mechanics repair, and the Finn gets back on track.

The standings have been shaken up and the eliminated drivers were not expected so soon. Heidfeld, Alonso, Nakajima, Trulli, and Rosberg are among the drivers who will not attend Q3. However, they will have the opportunity to choose their setup tomorrow for the race, whether it rains or the track is dry.

The Q3 is officially underway, but few drivers are going out. After 3 minutes into the 10-minute session, only the two Brawn GP drivers have gone out. The installation lap allows them to check that the slicks are okay. The other drivers are taking to the track as well. Sutil is immediately performing well.

As the rubber is laid down on the tarmac, the lap times improve. Brawn GP and Red Bull Racing immediately take the advantage. The times are three seconds slower than during Q1.

There are barely two minutes left, and four drivers can fight for the pole position. The two Red Bulls and the two Brawn GPs. Vettel and Webber are currently in the lead. Barrichello improves all his sectors. He takes the pole position ahead of Vettel. Then it’s Webber’s turn to improve. He takes the pole by more than 7 tenths! Vettel arrives but cannot do better; he is second for now. The Red Bull engineers are in heaven… it’s time for the Brawn GPs to make their final lap. Button also improves and takes second place from Vettel. Then it’s Barrichello’s turn to repeat the scenario. He takes second place.

The two Brawn GPs are therefore sandwiched between the two Red Bulls. Hamilton is 5th, ahead of his teammate. Sutil is 7th in front of the Ferraris and Piquet Jr.

Results of the qualifying – German GP – Saturday, July 11, 2009: