2015 F1 Round 7 – Canadian Grand Prix Qualifying: Hamilton Takes Pole, Vettel Out in Q1 with Power-Unit Trouble

Hamilton took pole position in qualifying for the Canadian Grand Prix on June 6 with a time of 1:14.393, 0.309 seconds ahead of Rosberg. Räikkönen was third, with Mercedes locking out the front row and Ferrari taking one place on the second row.

The two Mercedes cars were almost level in Q1: Rosberg clocked 1:15.893, just 0.002 seconds quicker than Hamilton. Grosjean then improved his lap time further on supersoft tyres, while Vettel’s Ferrari was hampered by an MGU-H problem.

Vettel could manage only a 1:17.344 for 16th, while a lack of power left Massa 17th. Merhi and Stevens were 18th and 19th; Button was unable to take part in qualifying because of an engine failure after third practice, leaving only 19 drivers in the official classification.

In Q2, Hamilton led Rosberg by 0.012 seconds with a 1:14.661, while Grosjean moved up to third late in the session. Sainz was eliminated in 11th, with Verstappen 12th, Ericsson 13th, Alonso 14th and Nasr 15th.

On the first runs in Q3, Hamilton set a 1:14.393 and Rosberg a 1:14.702. Neither driver improved on his second run, giving Hamilton pole for the race, his sixth of the season.

Räikkönen took third with a 1:15.014, while Bottas was fourth. Grosjean was fifth and Maldonado sixth, putting both Lotus cars in the first three rows.

Hülkenberg was seventh, Kvyat eighth, Ricciardo ninth and Pérez tenth. The qualifying classification reflects the times set on track; grid penalties will then be applied separately to determine Sunday’s starting positions.

Verstappen had previously received a five-place grid penalty for a collision at the Monaco Grand Prix and was handed another ten-place penalty at this event for using his fifth engine. With too few grid positions available to apply the penalties in full, he will also have to serve a ten-second stop-go penalty during the race.