2016 F1 Round 11 Hungarian Grand Prix Qualifying – Rosberg takes last-gasp pole after four red flags

Qualifying for the Hungarian Grand Prix was delayed twice by heavy rain, with the track initially slippery and the rain still falling. Nearly two hours after the session began, the surface was finally approaching dry. There were four red flags in total.

Archive photograph of the grid at the Hungaroring in Budapest during the 2016 Hungarian Grand Prix.

Q1 was first suspended because the rain was too heavy. After the restart, Sauber’s Ericsson hit the barrier at Turn 10, bringing out another red flag. A dry line then began to appear, although grip still varied around the circuit.

Massa subsequently spun into the barrier, causing the third Q1 stoppage. The final red flag came after Manor driver Haryanto crashed, preventing Palmer from completing his final lap.

At the start of Q2, the drivers used intermediates on the drying track. Bottas was the first to switch to supersoft slicks and went fastest, prompting the rest of the field to change tyres. Lap times fell rapidly as conditions improved.

Hamilton was fastest in Q2 at one point but went off on his final attempt and ended the segment tenth on a 1:24.836. Grosjean was eleventh with a 1:24.941, leaving Hamilton just 0.105 seconds clear as he advanced.

Pérez and Räikkönen also went out in Q2, finishing thirteenth and fourteenth respectively, while Kvyat was twelfth. Conditions were changing quickly, and several drivers who had briefly been near the front ultimately missed Q3.

On the final Q3 runs, Alonso spun at a crest, and Hamilton abandoned his lap after encountering yellow flags. Once the yellow flags had cleared, Rosberg completed a 1:19.965 to take pole by 0.143 seconds over Hamilton.

Red Bull’s Ricciardo and Verstappen were third and fourth, with Vettel fifth and Sainz sixth. Both McLarens made the top eight, followed by Hülkenberg in ninth and Bottas in tenth. Seven teams were represented in the top ten.