The Spanish Grand Prix - Qualifying Formula 1

Special delivery for Lewis Hamilton, we hope to bring you some

first-class racing this weekend. Welcome to qualifying from Barcelona

for the Spanish Grand Prix. The sun is shining, the weather is looking

good, and we are hoping for some breathtaking action, just like we

saw in Bahrain. It is not a great start by Nico

Rosberg, Fernando Alonso very quick. Fernando Alonso round the outside,

he is going to get at least second here, from Sebastian Vettel.

Sebastian Vettel comes back, into the high-speed chicane, he is past

him. He has done it.They will need to pay to put the DRS rear wing in

place. Can they get round safely?He drives him off the circuit! Come

on! It is broken, he will have to pit again. Sergio Perez goes for it.

Don't hit each other, boys! Do they need to fight this hard? It is

putting them in danger. He has hit him! That was pretty hefty contact.

Kimi Raikkonen goes across the marbles. He is second. That was

beautiful. Romain Grosjean get past Paul di Resta. He gets into third

place. He is down the inside of the Ferrari, side-by-side on the exit of

the corner. They touch! It is very hot stuff between Mark Webber and

Lewis Hamilton. Lewis Hamilton has gone down the inside for fifth

place, he is on to the last lap. Sebastian Vettel wins in Bahrain.

Yes! Quite a touchy-feely race from

Bahrain, just the way we like it, that this is round five, and we are

back in Europe. In a couple of weeks, the glitz of Monaco. Then,

Montreal, followed by a homecoming for four drivers at Silverstone. You

can revel in the atmosphere in Northamptonshire or watch it live on

BBC, as well as all of the free practice. This weekend, it is about

tap us and Rioja as the Catalan crowd swarmed into the circuit to

see if there he wrote Fernando Alonso can fight the Bulls and

To lead us gracefully through the weekend, David Coulthard. He has

appeared on the podium here for times. And Eddie Jordan. Eddie

Jordan has never appeared on the podium here, but he is wearing a

fabulous shirt! I will have to check that! I am sure you are right!

do you feel about the championship so far? We have been served titanic

battles in every area, and I see that continuing, more of the same,

please. We want the excitement and the glamour and as many different

winners as we can get. Pastor Maldonado threw up a surprise last

year, winning for Williams, their first win since 2004. He was no

friend of mine! It was a great result for Williams, but they looked

some way short of achieving that this weekend. Qualifying is so

important here. Everybody thinks Monaco is the most important, but 20

out of the 22 races have been one here from the front row. Why is

that? You can overtake, but Formula 1 was historically the fastest car

qualifying at the front, and it was a series of sprints, but with DRS

and carrying the fuel levels, and managing the tyres, that is why it

is possible to overtake. It is the unpredictability of the tyres.

has been going on already. Here is the news.

Fernando Alonso has only once when the Spanish grand prix, but he hopes

he can add to that. Qualifying is not Ferrari's strong point, and this

race has been won from the front row for 16 years. It is time to break

this statistic. This year, with the degradation, many things can

happen. It is more important to have a good tyre management and to have

an extra point to in qualifying. Sebastian Vettel has an impressive

strike rate when it comes to pole position, and he has claimed top

spot in over a third of his career. He has not had it all of his own way

this year, but he hopes Red Bull will answer his prayers. Number one

on the wish list was to understand the tyres and the races we had and

why we have suffered. Jenson Button and Sergio Perez have talked things

through after they clashed on track in Bahrain. They are battling not

just with each other but also with an underperforming MacLaren, and

that does not look to have got better. We are in a similar position

than we were two weekends ago. If anything, slightly worse. With this

sport, everybody is moving forward, so even if we have gained, everybody

is gaining. It is tricky. But they are working flat out to improve it.

Paul di Resta was not happy after this happened in free practice

yesterday, but he has had a smile on his face since his performance in

Bahrain. He finished in fourth place, just missing out on his first

podium. We need to build a faster car. If they want me to get onto the

podium, they need to give me something. It is nice to get fourth

place out of the way early in the year. If you had said that at the

beginning, I would have grabbed it with both hands. Lewis Hamilton has

never won the Spanish Grand Prix, but he knows how important the start

of the European leg of the championship is. We need strong

results going into the European season, so it is important for

everybody. This is one of the toughest parts of the year. As we

come off such a long break. I hope we get off on the right foot.

Finally, James Anderson has left his position as technical director of

Lotus, with Nick Chester replacing him. The resignation comes as a blow

to the team, currently second in the constructors championship. It is

thought he will go to Williams, McLaren or Ferrari.

It is a blow for the team, round five, how much of a blow? We are

underplaying it, it is a massive blow. For any team that is

successful to lose their technical director, it is just short of

catastrophic in my view, it is a big estate. The smart money is he is

going to move to Ferrari. How good is he? Peak is one of the star

designers in Formula 1. It is not just a case of losing one man, it is

what he does to the confidence of the rest of the team. As a driver,

cannot affect you psychologically? Of course. When I moved to Red

Bull, I wanted the best person available. He has joined the team

and taken them forward. The drivers are attached to their engineers and

designers. Everybody has been talking about updates in Barcelona,

we have discussed it, Gary has got the headlines.

I have had a look at some of the performances in the first four races

of the season, it is not just the fastest card that leads the

championship. Averaging the fastest lap by each driver, I have got ten

cars together to do a lap of Barcelona. Nico Rosberg is the

fastest. I have given the gaps in car lengths. The bottom number,

Lewis Hamilton is 3.2 car lengths behind Nico Rosberg. Felipe Massa is

close to his team-mate, but still 7.3 car lengths away from the

fastest. Mark Webber has got a lot of ground to make up to Sebastian

Vettel, and the same for Romain Grosjean behind Kimi Raikkonen. But

this is what the team wants to see, the drivers close together. If the

team build a better car, they will move up and give them two chances.

In the top ten, McLaren are absent. They have got a lot of updates,

including the side pods, getting more air flow to pick up the

high-speed air coming out of the exhaust system Tom moving get inside

the rear tyre, to create more downforce. They have also tested a

new front wing. They have changed the inboard end. It allows better

airflow to the back of the car, but they have not got anything out of

it. If I was trying to develop the McLaren, I would be looking at this

problem, the front of the car bouncing up and down. It onset of

the driver on the corner entry. What Red Bull, you need more slot gaps,

so you get more consistent downforce. The top teams have got

more compensated front wings. If you look at Red Bull, the car hardly

moves, so the driver can commit to the corner much quicker. McLaren

still have a lot of work to do, and they had better get on with it,

because the championship is getting away from them.

Yes, there is a lot of disappointed McLaren fans out there. The thing

about upgrades, this is not a place where you can win, but you can lose

out if you are not as fast and things are not working as well as

Apology for the loss of subtitles for 42 seconds

everybody else. Let's have a look at time last year and - --. Those

championship-winning days seem to be becoming ever more distant. What

When I came into motorsport, there were two teams I revered - Williams

and McLaren. Two great British teams that dominated the 80s and

90s. There is the world champions. Both had legendary names behind the

wheels of their machines. 36 championships between them now seen

such a distant memory. This here, Williams are yet to score a point.

McLaren, who threw away the Championship last year, are

celebrating 10th place on the grid in Bahrain. It is a bit sad that

the world champion is quite so excited to have made it into the

top 10. What has gone wrong? Only five races ago we were winning

cranberries. When you are operating at that level, you are going to go

through peaks and troughs. You take risks. In our case, over the winter,

we changed a lot of things to the car - a grand prix winning kart -

and we did that with a view that it would pay back in the long term. --

car. Arguably, you have the fast as car last season. Where has it all

gone? You are in 6th place. What are you going to do about this?

have done a lot of aerodynamic and mechanical testing. We do not focus

on one area. If I look at the history of teams who have had poor

seasons, you can have a poor season and still come 4th or 5th in the

Championship. It is not like that anymore. And you are at the back

and out of the points. The Grid has certainly become more competitive

but that is the name of the game. It is a competition - survival of

the fittest. At this grand prix last year, Williams won. They

thought they had turned a corner. Our aim now going backwards? -- are

they now going backwards? They are really struggling. Marussia are

much more competitive. You are now saying they are your competitors.

think they have done a good job this year and we have not fulfilled

our potential. We believe in a few races we will be back up to where

we were before. McLaren always attracted the biggest names in

Formula One. Lewis Hamilton was no exception and his loss looks like

it is hurting the team even more as Sergio Perez struggles to make the

step up. This time last year you had twice as many points as you do

now. Really? Definitely not the start to the season I would like to

have had. Is Sergio Perez here because of his ability and what he

can bring to the team? He brings no cash to the team Foster he was

selected because of his excellent performances on long runs. -- the

team. At Williams, a combination of a lack of expense drivers and a

poor car has made them one of the slowest in qualifying. Williams do

not seem to be quite as competitive. I take it you are not ultra

concerned? Not alter concerned but I am concerned. -- Ultra concerned.

The board appoints Sam Michael's to run the show. What would you do to

turn this team around? It is not appropriate for me to discuss my

position within the company. I understand what the board is doing

to get this car back to the front. I would be backing them. What would

you do? I just answer that. I would be supporting what the guys are

doing now. You would not change anything? That is the fastest way

of getting ourselves back to the front. It is all very well he's

smiling. It is not great news for Jenson Button and Sergio Perez.

is more frustrating for Jenson Button. He knows that when you have

a difficult car, the chances of turning it round up pretty slim.

Can they do it? Of course they can. It does beg the question, why do

McLaren find themselves in these situations more often than not? If

you look at Lotus, they might not always have had championship-

winning cars but they have always been in the top three. Eddy did ask

the question but it was skirted around. How can they go from having

the fastest car tha steered. -- last year with Jenson Button doing

so well. They have turned up in the way they did. They do not seem to

be moving forward. Be fundamentally changed the design of the car.

Clearly they have gone for a different aerodynamic concept. They

talk about correlation. Sergio Perez kept mentioning coronation.

That is taking up wind-tunnel data, putting it on the race track and

not seeing the result. As far as I know, they still use the wind

tunnel, as do Ferrari and other teams. That he is based in Cologne.

The difficulty they have is the odd car would probably be quicker than

the new one. -- the old car. What you're saying about the wind tunnel

testing and bringing it here. In the free practice sessions, they

would have been testing it. It does not seem to have worked. It clearly

has not. It is embarrassing for the top teams - teams that aspire to

win championships - to explain why it is not working. They had

investors, sponsors and fans who follow the team. They had to

explain themselves. It is the same for a football manager or a public

sport where you have to deliver. felt it was so exciting - the

racing. Watching two drivers do this is something else. Sergio

Perez was under pressure going into this grand prix. He did not have a

wonderful start to the season. Jenson Button had established

himself as number one. Then Sergio Perez came back with a bank. As he

tries to undercut, he touched the back of the cup of Jenson Button.

He said, come on, have a word! -- the car. They ran side-by-side. It

Jenson Button ran him wide. This is where the relationship started to

develop will start once you get a nice, Welcome to the team, Jenson

Button has laid a marker saying, I want to be Team Leader. He went and

showed he could do the business. That is great for McLaren and

racing fans everywhere. We could not get hold of Martin Whitmarsh

afterwards. It does not look likely be will see the McLarens at the

front foot stuck he was talking about Williams having problems. --

at the front. Clare, obviously the question on everyone's lips is, as

I have asked, are you Ultra concerned? What is your view?

are Williams. We like to score points. To have Nant is frustrating

for everyone. -- to not have any is frustrating for everyone. We need

to keep working and we will get there. I am sure you are aware that

James Allison is available at the moment. Is he available?Do not

play with me like that! I need to go and find him if he is available.

His error the real problem with your car? -- is aero. In the mid-

corner section, but guys are struggling with grip. We had a good

test last week. The drivers are saying the car is better than it

felt. We need to keep working on that. Can you celebrate again?We

always come here wanting to win because we are Williams and that is

what they want to do. It would be a good to get points. Fingers crossed.

Claire making out that it is definitely the car and not the

drivers. We have not really seen what Valtteri Bottas has yet?

comes with some great credentials. Pastor Maldonado has matured during

his career. No question they can deliver if the car is working well.

Williams have a great depth of history, winning, success. They do

not seem to be able to use that for future performance? When you were

driving, to your fabulous of world- class standard, did you have a

coach? I had a basketball coach. I did not. I tried every area to

improve my performance. I am sure you did. It seems a solitary

existence for Formula One drivers. With other sports, they seem to get

lots of help. We are interested when a young team of drivers were

going to take into the Chelsea Football Club Academy to swap

stories. Let's see how they got on. This is an exchange programme with

Chelsea Academy and the motor sport agency. We think it is really good

that we get an insight to the other sports and vice-versa, to encourage

people to come in to see what we're doing with the development of young

players. In our last five, 10 years, there had been a lot of changes in

training methods. All the methods used on senior players are in a

academies. Intervention of science is incredible. The boys will get an

insight into what the normal session is like. At Chelsea Academy,

we say, if we can learn from somebody else, we will look at it.

It is a fantastic place. I suppose it is all about an individual and

how much he really wants it. It was very entertaining - a good

experience learning different drills. The way they treat their

game is similar to ourselves. They focus on every element. The whole

facility is unbelievable. They have 37 football pitches. They have

nutrition that massaging, medical centres. Even a swimming pool. They

want to get the best out of their players. The more we go into the

future, the more technical everything becomes. It is key to

give drivers, footballers, whatever, the best to succeed and bring the

best out of them. It is important to be in and around the right

environment so you can develop your talent. The facilities here are

fantastic. It is a brilliant environment to learn in and grow up

and get better as a player. The technology that goes into it is

fantastic. It is another dynamic added for young players, so they

can look back and improve the games. Today was really about the

opportunity for our drivers to understand how hard athletes in

other sports work. The detail they go into, the briefing and

debriefing, the analysis and reflection. Take some of that back

and use it in motorsport. They put us out of our comfort zones this

morning. You can see we're definitely not footballers. It is

now payback time. The motor sports academy has been going for five,

six years. The idea is to support the drivers, trying to help them

develop the skills they need to take advantage of opportunities. We

also need to learn from other sports. We need to bring in best

practice that is perhaps not in our sport. There is an element of

trying to be cutting edge was supporting the drivers in their

aspirations. We are lucky to have four British drivers in Formula One.

To have Max working with our young drivers and working with the

Chelsea youth players has been really great. You always look up to

the guys at the top of the sport and take inspiration from that. Max

fantastic, it was interesting, playing against teenagers who were

better than us! It was really enjoyable, interesting to see how

they work. You got your own back when it comes to reactions. They are

not used to it. Their training is different from ours, it is

interesting to see a difference. you think you learned anything?

learned how to take a good penalty! Simple things, different structures,

different warm-ups. Basically, nothing that will help you as a

racing driver? I am not saying that! What has stretching got to do

with driving? Warming up, the routine of exercises can help, I

suppose, in some way. You stay with it! You were in the home of the

champions of Europe, Chelsea. Will you be in Amsterdam to see another

glory day? I will not, unfortunately! I have got other

things planned, but I will record it. He will be stretching! We do not

all get free tickets like some people. We wish you luck. You want

to stay here and the driving in Formula 1 next year? Yes, I am

concentrating on this year, we have got some good things to be announced

soon, and I am looking forward to hopefully being in the paddock.

have got to move on quickly. Let's go to the commentary box. Eddie

Jordan, come with me. Let's have a quick word with Bernie Ecclestone.

We can have a chat with him now. Good afternoon. How are you? Very

well. How do you feel as though the season is shaping up? Very good.We

are going to see a piece about Russia, how is the calendar being

prepared for next year? We have got 20 odd races, but I have not put a

calendar together yet. If Russia What about New Jersey? At the

moment, I do not know. If they both come in, we would have 21 races, so

might we lose any of the European races? Probably only the British.We

could lose Silverstone? Yes. We have got to lose somewhere, and as we are

all British, we do not grab everything for ourselves. You are

the ultimate joke maker, level with us! What are you trying to tell the

public? Straighten it up! I was asked a question. You did not and to

truthfully! We have been talking about losing Belgium, which one is

it? Have you? Probably lose one of them. It will not be Silverstone. I

am serious. You are not serious about losing Silverstone? We have

straighten that one up. Thank you, Mr Jordan! While you are here, I

have seen the Bernie Ecclestone of the bikes world hanging around here.

Do you get together, or do they followed you? I let them know what

we are doing and they work around it. When will we know about New

Jersey? I should think in another couple of months. One question, he

brought us to Asia, when people were not considering going to Asia, and

that is one of the biggest success stories that you have had? For sure.

It has been successful. Let's have a look at the case that David did with

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Welcome to Russia, how do you feel? Thank you! I have not had a chance

to see the circuit. We can drive on a part of the circuit. First

impressions of the venue? It is pretty special. Once everything is

finished, it will look incredible. It looks pretty quick. Let's have a

drive around. I am not sure about your normal ride! That is specific

to Red Bull. It is not as flexible as that in real life, is it? It is

control that is the issue, being in the passenger seat. You do not know

what the other guy is doing. It is amazing how it feels quicker.

is going to be a nice corner. is a long corner. If that part of

the circuit? That is a car park!We do not have much racetrack.

much, but we have tracks. Now we are talking. This one is the second

corner, opening up. It should allow us to pick up some speed. We should

have stopped at that junction! Russian style! It seems that Olympic

Parks are operated to the same standard as the way Bernie

Ecclestone runs Formula 1. Formula 1 is immaculate. Definitely, all of

the stadium and the modern architecture. I am looking forward

to coming back and seeing how it looks once it is finished. Does it

touch with you at all the fact that you will race in the inaugural

Russian grand prix? I see it as a privilege. It is something unique.

To be part of it, it is great. have got your own model of car, you

have made a fine mess of this, but we are here, on the tarmac, in the

middle of the Olympic Park, it is impressive. It will be great. It is

hard to imagine, but this will be the long straight after the

start/finish. The second corner by the ice skating venue, and beyond,

what do we have? I think that one is the speed skating rink, and that is

the ice hockey Stadium. That will be the football stadium for the World

Cup. Mountains in the background. You cannot see the scene now.

the Black Sea. The water is blue, though. Why do they call it the

Black Sea? I do not know!Let us be the first to wish you good luck for

the first Russian Grand Prix. Cheers.

A nice piece! I want is -- I want to show you Bernie Ecclestone's bus.

There seems to be an extension this year. Yes, it is a conservatory or

something! It looks as if it has musky to prove nothing. It would be

better for it to be bullet-proof. would not dare mention such a

thing! I did not know if I could be rude, so I am glad you were next to

me. He was keen to be interviewed by you! I wonder why! I am not sure!

And interesting GT about Russia, it will be incredible. It does not

become more clear than that. Forget New Jersey for the moment, but

Russia, the whole thing, Russia is a big market, the vastness of the

country, it is part of the footprint that I alluded to, Bernie Ecclestone

took us to Asia, Africa, South America, he is a genius at seeing

the future. He moves when the money is. That is part of being magical.

If you want the business to continue. He is hugely astute, you

have to admire everything he does. lot of people will be worried if we

will lose Spain, Belgium, Germany. It has got a double edge to it.

did say we would not lose Silverstone, and that is the most

important for us! Let's have a better look at this track, David

The first race back in Europe, and as a Spanish speaking country,

walking past the fans, you have a big Spanish report. Does that give

you an extra boost? We do not have a Mexican Grand Prix, the closest we

go is Austin. It is special to be back and have good support from the

people. We have stopped in the middle of the second corner. This is

very interesting. It is a very big corner, the first three. You have to

get the first one right, the on the right line, and the second one is

the same. Once you have done the first one, you are thinking about

the third one. This is one of the defining corners of the Barcelona

track. You always try to be flat. It is important, the line. It is very

tight on the entry and the apex, but it opens so much on the exit. It is

a right-hander. It is always hard to keep it to the right. Corner nine.

You do not see the except, you just see where you end up. You see

nothing. You do not know where you are. Often, do see people running

out. You move into a great overtaking opportunity. After

Bahrain, it was a great race for you, good points, wheel to wheel

with your team-mate, you have shown you have got the hunger and the

drive to not just the another member of the team, you want to be the team

leader. Exactly, that is my aim. I came here to win and to fight for

the win. We had a mad fight. It was a bit too risky. If you see the

race, you can see that we risk a lot, to take both cars out of the

track. Was there any contact?Once or twice, we had some contact.

much? Just this much.Do not hate me! It was just that much. But in

the end, we had a nice chat with the bosses and got it clear. Now we are

looking forward to fighting game, but hopefully further up the grid.

We do not be want -- we do not want to fight for sixth or eighth place.

It is a Mickey Mouse Park. They call these sausages. You do not go over

that much, you try to go here. It is not that bad, the Kurds are not our

weakest point. We should be all right. Our problem is traction. We

struggle coming out of the corner. Keep smiling, enjoy, have a good

weekend. There is Felipe Massa, just a couple

of seconds ago, he came out, getting ready for qualifying behind us. He

was fastest in the last session, what do you think his chances are of

Apology for the loss of subtitles for 42 seconds

under way, nobody is rushing to get out there. The clock is ticking

away. The target is to get into the top 16, and then make through to the

second part of qualifying. We saw them in practice, Gary Anderson is

always looking at the target times. RADIO: The wind is similar to

gestate afternoon -- yesterday afternoon. Similar intensity to

yesterday. When you get to the first corner, you have a bit more

downforce because of the headwind. The tailwind through the night

corner, the quick right-hander, that is a bit more concerning, if you get

a gust of wind up the back of the car. That is where you have to be

careful. As far as lap times are concerned, we have not seen

everybody do the real performance yet. I would be looking at 1:23 as

Apology for the loss of subtitles for 42 seconds

being the cut-off point for 16th as ever. A former winner of this

grand prix, but he would love to add another victory. The reaction last

year was superb in Valencia. It is six years since he won here. He has

massive support, the only Spanish driver to have won a grand prix, and

he has transformed the following. In the early days in Spain, you would

have a couple of people in the grandstands, because they normally

follow motorbikes, but Formula 1 has been embraced. Gary, Sauber are

struggling. We have spoken about McLaren and Williams, but they were

fifth on the grid last year, there is no chance of that today.

really. They have gone for the more narrow side pod package. That is a

drag reduction device. It is used nowadays to generate downforce. They

have taken away some of the potentially... It is difficult to

make work if they have not got it. And few teams have got a bit of work

to do over the course of this event and the rest of the year. Tom?

walking past the Williams garage, and the team were showing Pastor

Maldonado a photograph of him with last year's race winning trophy, and

he was shouting at this photograph to get himself wrapped up. Have you

ever used methods like that, David? Know, but it answers questions. I

live in the same apartment block in Monaco, and it explains the strange

noises! I never needed motivation. Sebastian Vettel was listening to

music. A Toro Rosso takes to the track, Daniel Ricciardo, getting out

there nice and early, benefiting from the clean air. It is lovely to

see the youngsters here this weekend, enjoying the sights and

sounds of Formula 1. Daniel Ricciardo on the track. The boss of

Ferrari here this weekend to monitor things. There is no doubt that

Ferrari are in a better position this year, but a bit restricted in

points, because Fernando Alonso is on 47, 30 points behind Sebastian

Vettel. But that is because they have a DRS problem and the accident

in Malaysia. Hindsight is wonderful. But I am sure they wish

they had called him in when the front wing came off. The double

failure. The message was given him -- to him that he should not use

it, but he decided to give it another go, so he had to make two

pitstops in the first few laps. But they hung in there with a car that

was nowhere near as good as this year's. So I expect him to be

battling for the championship, closing the gap down to Sebastian

Vettel. We are through the first couple of corners, because working

very hard, and it continues to do so. It is a great opening section,

it is what makes this circuit is interesting for the drivers. We join

him on number five. Then, number seven, you drop into the apex and

immediately accelerate up the hill. The camera does not do this

elevation change justice. RADIO: Remember to learn it all on this

map. That is to do with the second I session -- to do with the

synchronisation. Daniel Ricciardo continues his lap, we are into

technical stuff here. Yes, the little chicane that has been added

to slow the cars down. It neutered a great last section of the Barcelona

circuit, but demands to improve safety, reduce the speed... How does

this compare to this morning? not get a proper lap in this

morning, he got held up by Lewis Hamilton, but he still went quicker,

so that is not particularly fast. He is on the hard tyre, he went out on

the medium tired this morning. has got a few laps of fuel in their

so he will do another one two, depending on the life of the tyres.

They would have built up information about what they can start to expect

from the tyres this weekend. The medium tyres of white. Valtteri

Bottas on the hard tyres. That is orange, I think! It is good they

have gone for the slight change of colour this year. Valtteri Bottas

hoping Williams have made improvements. Quite a lot of work on

the steering wheel. He has got his big opportunity with a team that has

won championships in the past, won a grand prix last year, but they have

not started well at all. Everybody in Formula 1 follows Williams, but

more often than not, they are playing catch up to the middle of

the grid, rather than to the front. He has gone faster than Nico

Hulkenberg, and Daniel Ricciardo. Jean-Eric Vergne is quickest. That

is slightly encouraging for Williams, let's wait and see. Lots

of new parts on the Williams this weekend. We will also wait to see if

the top teams decide to try and get through on the hard tyres or save

the hard tyres for tomorrow. On the hard tyre is Romain Grosjean, he was

the fourth fastest this morning. You course of last season, he was

consistent. It will be interesting to see if Romain Grosjean can

deliver. Kimi Raikkonen will be first over the line. Then we will

see Romain Grosjean. Kimi Raikkonen is fastest at the moment. That was

a mistake. On the by no sector he made a mistake this morning. -- on

the final sector. He ran it over the kerb. Kimi Raikkonen was still

quickest. A bit of a tail wind coming into turned 10. It will

affect drive and traction into the last turn of foot stuck I will be

surprised if this is quicker. - us the last turn. That lock up will

have cost him at least a 10th pull stub Fernando Alonso is coming out

on the hard tyre. -- at least eight Raikkonen was doing. As he came

back on to the circuit, you saw the sparking. He got very wide before

entering turn three. He was already drifting wide. That was affecting

his overall lap time. We will have to wait and see what everybody does.

That was on a hard tyre. You would expect to see lower teams using a

medium compound. Paul di Resta, last time he was tantalisingly

close. He looks fired-up and confident. The car has more

improvements. Not quite as quick as the Toro Rosso of Jean-Eric Vergne.

A few teams have said that car is looking quick this weekend. He has

proved that already on his first run. Did Paul di Resta have a lock

up? As you drop down into the apex, there was an adjustment on the

steering wheel which was differential. He got away with the

apex. We know these tyres are fragile. Across the line goes

Fernando Alonso. Kimi Raikkonen has done a good first sector and so

decent middle sector. He might be getting another lapped out of these

hard tyres. There was the classic line. He had more space in to turn

three. Fantastic to see a change of direction. He pulled the car over

to the left side of the circuit. He has gone fastest of all. That is a

big chunk of time. A bit of oversteer in to turn five. Plenty

of width on exit. Using all the road. The crowd is loving it. The

lap time does not matter. They are giving him home support. The DRS is

Hulkenberg. Filipe Massa is also half a second up. Fernando Alonso

is half a second up as well. He is matching Fernando Alonso as well.

Let's see what the final sector gives us. Across the line, 1:22.2

on the harder compound tyre. That is similar to the lap time from

this morning. That is tremendous pace from Ferrari. Lotus will be a

bit surprised to have seen such a gain of speed by Ferrari. Get see

what happens. They will not all be going flat out at this stage was

dug normally I am not a big fan of these slow motions. -- at this

stage. He hit the big, red sausage kerb. The car gets itself on the

other side and he was ready to change direction. Great conference

in a change of direction. -- corner. That looks slightly more

standard. He runs it out to the edge. Great commitment from Nico

Rosberg. This is a long, medium speed corner. The Red Bull will have

taken his attention slightly. He would not have been comfortable.

is on the medium compound. He is already .3 down on that sector, that

was not due to the time lost because of the Red Bull. Mercedes have not

looked as fast relative to the other one fine performances this year. But

they are the fastest in this sector, though. He is only 0.2 down on the

outright fastest time. Let's see if the third sector is impressive.

Mercedes have lost performance in the races until now, Colin fired

well, but not done so well in the races. Let's see whether this is

good enough. Yes, he is on the softer tyre, and he does fastest. It

is not quite the fastest time yet, Felipe Massa was a fraction faster

this morning, but that is the fastest time of qualifying. Now,

Sergio Perez. We will wait for him to get his way to the line. We just

saw Nicky louder, with the chairman of the board, nodding his head. It

is good for the boss to see due fastest of all at this stage.

Button on board as he comes through the final corner. Sergio Perez 1.4

seconds away from Nicole spoke. -- from Nico Rosberg. A shake of the

head. Jenson Button on the same tyre as Sergio Perez. Sebastian Vettel

going second fastest. He is on the softer tyre. Lewis Hamilton goes

fastest. He is also on the softer compound. He goes 0.2 quicker than

his team-mate. Mercedes are showing more pace. We wondered if they had

been hiding it away. We have not seen Ferrari or voters on the softer

tyre. I wonder if they will run it. We have yet to see Mark Webber

establish a lap time. He is in fifth place. On board with Pastor

Maldonado. RADIO: He is coming up behind. Massively held up by the

Williams through the last sector, he has got to get a penalty for that.

That will be looked at, that will be interesting. The steward this

weekend is Alan Jones, the 1980 world champion. Tom, it is pretty

active on the track. I just wanted to comment on the track temperature,

it has gone up two degrees. We have got clear blue skies above. One of

the guys at Pirelli said, as the track temperature warms up, the

difference between the compounds will reduce. RADIO: We will use them

again. At one point yesterday, it looked like the difference was 0.5

seconds, but it might be as little as 0.3 seconds. Esteban Gutierrez

crosses the line. Who will be in the top 16? We are missing Valtteri

Bottas, Mikko Holcombe Berg, Charles Peek, Jules Bianchi, Giedo van der

Garde and Max Chilton. Nico Hulkenberg desperately trying to

move himself out of the drop zone. All that matters is getting into the

top 16 at this stage. Paul di Resta has some work to do, Adrian Sutil is

currently in 11th place. They go Holcombe Berg has been struggling

with a car that has not responded the way he wanted -- Nico

Hulkenberg. It is not looking like a great lap so far. Another 0.3 down

in the second sector, so he will be around one second off the fastest.

He will be in the top ten with that. We will wait and see. Is this going

to be enough for Nico Hulkenberg to make it through to Q2? He is up to

ninth place. Paul di Resta is safely through. Kimi Raikkonen is on a

quick lap. The fastest in the first two sectors, and he is on the harder

tyre. That is interesting. He has not gone for the softer tyre.

Traffic on the last sector, that is ridiculous. Is that Esteban

Gutierrez? He was having a siesta. Still a better lap than he had done

until that stage, he is safely through, and he has done it on the

hard tyre. Red Bull seem to be saving their hard tyres for

tomorrow, because Sebastian Vettel and Mark Webber will run the medium

tyres again in the second part of qualifying. Different tactics from

some. Valtteri Bottas is definitely out, the chequered flag is out, and

one of the Williams is not through to the second part of qualifying.

The Sauber was trying to keep a gap to the car in front, but you cannot

obstruct another car. That is fairly straightforward, he will get a

penalty afterwards. Esteban Gutierrez is currently in 16th

place, but he will get a penalty. Let's see if anybody else manages to

pick him, as he is the one to be pushed down. Both Williams are not

through at this stage. They have both seen the chequered flag.

Esteban Gutierrez will hold on to 16th place, so who will win the

battle of caterer and Russia? Jules Bianchi is ahead of Charles Peek.

Max Chilton about to cross the line. Giedo van der Garde goes faster than

all of them, well done to him. He has beaten his team-mate. RADIO: You

are in 17th at the moment. Giedo van der Garde will be well pleased with

his performance there. Getting ahead of all of the others. He knows this

track, but the headline story is that Williams have failed with both

cars to get into Q2, they have not managed to get both cars into Q2 at

any session this year, but this time, they have failed with both.

They have usually had one of them in there, but neither of them. It is so

disappointing, when they have had the updates on the car, and the

drivers have been it -- reporting improvements. Esteban Gutierrez will

end up with a penalty after this. will be interesting to see if Kimi

Raikkonen complains. Jenson Button was complaining. The two Williams

quite if you drive is getting in people's way. That is poor driving.

Kimi Raikkonen was on a fast lap, there is no excuse. David has spoken

about it, but he will get a penalty, so it is a good day for Valtteri

Bottas, because one of the Williams will get in there. This is coming up

behind Pastor Maldonado, the Jenson Button. Just coming towards the end.

He has been warned previously for this. Coming to the end of the lap,

he gets on his way, he complains. When they are complaining on the

radio, they know it will go to race control. Kimi Raikkonen had a harder

time with Esteban Gutierrez, but Jenson Button, perhaps it is a sign

of the old head, he wants it to be recognised that he should have been

Both your cars are out. Describe your feelings? It is not why we

come racing. The boys are going to work really hard. We need to

improve. These updates have not worked. Are there more fundamental

problems that need sorting out? Is it a personal issue? That is not a

question for racing. It is a question for the factory. You never

panic in these kinds of situations. Formula One is so close - it is so

tight. That is what it is like in Formula One. No case for panicking.

Pastor Maldonado was holding up Jenson Button. What real thoughts?

I did not see it. Jenson Button was quite vocal about it. We will wait

and see what happens afterwards. Claire Williams was quite calm.

Their right not to panic. However, they are in a tangle, aren't they?

-- they are right. She is doing a brilliant job. She has taken over

from a legendary father. The whole team - there is no greater team in

terms of the support it has - in terms of history. She has a big

task. It is a huge job for her to turn it around. She has all the

ability and she will get there. Let's have a look at the Kimi --

Kimi Raikkonen incident. This was absolutely blatant. Kimi Raikkonen

keeps his cool. He does not yelp on the intercom to his team. He gets

on and qualifies. He is ultra confident. He has a very good car

under him. I just asked who they thought it was going to be.

Fernando Alonso seems to be the Just listening to a bit of radio

communication with Jean-Eric Vergne. They are hoping for some good

things. He was tense quickest in the first session. We will have to

see whether they will be smiling at the end of this session. That is

time of. What do we make of this difference in strategy? -- a heart

tyre. Up we're going to presumed that the median tyre is a bit

quicker. -- we are going to presume. That does not have to be the case

across the entire group. Kimi Raikkonen is clearly confident they

have a balance. That is king. If you cannot balance the grip, you'll

never deliver the lap time. Confidence in the balance of your

car allows you to deliver a couple of tents, maybe more. He is a

naturally gifted race have. Once we get rid his next part of qualifying,

it will be really interesting. -- racer. Hopefully the drivers will

have a shoot-out for a top position. We were talking about the different

usage of tyres. A different strategy from Lotus. It is a

different strategy. They looked after the tyres very well. Voters

did some good, long runs on the softer tyre. -- Lotus. It was a

quicker tyre. In reality, it was a situation where that two Red Bulls

drove carefully. They did not want to overdrive. They use the same set

in the second qualification. I think the third qualification will

be a push for position. What will they need to get into the top 10?

was a 10th of a second out last time. I think better 2.5 would be

the time. If you can do that, you have to be ready to go at again. --

sorry, at 22 point five. The track is changing quite a lot. Half a

second can disappear quickly. pity errors have to go and see the

students? It did look like it. Will Guitierrez have to see the

stewards? This is the second time the sheer he has managed to achieve

what he has. -- this year. He may end up with a penalty. He has this

opportunity to be here. But further up he gets when the penalty is

applied, the better time he will get. Nico Hulkenberg was 13th

fastest. Who knows what will happen as we go through the second part of

qualifying. Up the hill, past the fans on the hillside. Wonderful

support. Down the hill. This is the other DRS zone. Both zones are

being used this weekend. It might allow for a bit more overtaking on

the circuit. Romain Grosjean is waiting to come out. He is using

the softer tyre on this occasion. The Toro Rossos is out there again.

All beginning to build up nicely. We will have to wait to see how

this turns out. Sebastian Vettel is He has already been on that tyre.

He said that tyre. He will try to do it in. He may have to put on new

tyres. A steady out-lap. Let's if he could be flat or they wade

through. -- all Hathaway through. He is using all the road. Fernando

Alonso is heading out. It looks like he was on the medium compound

tyre. A new set of compound tyres for Fernando Alonso. Nico

Hulkenberg is giving his all with the Sauber. The best qualifying he

has had so far. He was on the grid with China. It is the first time he

has got into the top 10 all season. We know Nico Hulkenberg has plenty

of pace as a driver. Let's watch the last couple of corners.

Reasonably tidy. The exit is crucial. That looked all right. A

final run towards the flag. Where will this put Nico Hulkenberg? He

is the first to set a time was up his team-mate has set a time.

Pretty evenly matched. -- set a time. Fastest in both first and

second sectors so far. See if he gets wheelspin of the first and

second term. A lot cleaner. Then Kimi Raikkonen on the medium

compound tyre. That is the fastest we had seen so far. Straight on the

pace for Kimi Raikkonen. Has bloaters got enough? Sebastian

Vettel on tyres that have already been used. -- have Lotus got

enough? He may need to do more than that. He still has another set of

tyres. He has done six laps on those tyres. Hamilton is locking up

into Turn seven. He gets on to the brake pedal early. He is preparing

his brakes. Not quite enough temperature in the breaks. It is

1000 degrees when they are at their peak temperature. A bit of traffic

ahead. It is Sebastian Vettel. I suspect he will get out of the Wait.

Lewis Hamilton has gone force. There is Sebastian Vettel. -- 4th.

Romain Grosjean is fastest in the first sector. Fernando Alonso will

continue on his lap. He has lost a bit in the middle sector. A bit of

a slide for Fernando Alonso. Now through the final turn. Let's see

where it puts him. He does go fast. It is a tiny fraction of a second.

His middle sector is not going to be good enough. He is 4th fastest.

We heard the radio message for Mark Webber saying he had massive

traffic from Filipe Massa. He will have to do another flying lap. He

is intense. Filipe Massa is in force. -- 4th. This is where the

big test is for McLaren. Do they have any chance to get into the top

10? Jenson Button has been in the top 10 on every occasion so far

this year. I think they might struggle to do rip on this occasion.

They are more than a second off in this sector alone. -- do it. He

will have more potential out of the car. They need a lot from a new set

of tyres to have any hope of getting into the top 10. Not very

promising for McLaren at the moment. Fernando Alonso is fastest. Filipe

Massa or is in force. -- is in 4th. I wonder if anyone has been brave

enough to tell him, do not touch anything! No concern down mad. They

will be fitting a new set of tyres. It will be the last few moments of

this session that determines who will make it into the top 10. He

will be fighting for pole position. Will for -- will Fernando Alonso be

able to deliver? Mark Webber has had two pole positions in three

years. Let's not discount Kimi Raikkonen or Romain Grosjean. He

has never had a pole position. Keke Rosberg and Louis Houghton did not

show their true colours this morning. -- Lewis Hamilton. They

are beginning to up the pace. The initial times are not looking

promising. Away it goes the McLaren. A bit of a pause. -- a weight goes.

Mark Webber is heading down the pit the Lotus of Kimi Raikkonen back

out there will start they think the time is plenty fast enough. There

was a new strategy. They are given the option on here. It looks like

it will work for them in terms of not having to do any more laps.

Look how slow the car is going round! The difficulty you have is

the temperature. On the last lap he did not get DRS because you pulled

the paddle to learned. Do not pull the paddle too early. -- too early.

That is a problem. You have to get past that checkpoint. They are

talking about the second DRS zone. Here we go! Adrian Sutil is on his

way. He has a nice new set of mediums compound tyres to go out on.

Jean-Eric Vergne is in the top 10. There are two McLarens and two

Force Indias just outside. There is a big gap in towns between Romain

Grosjean and Nico Hulkenberg. The top five maybe saved but beyond

that, it is anybody's guess. -- may be safe. Sebastian Vettel is not

fast enough. Less than a 10th minute. That has been the weak

section on the track. Mark Webber seems to be the king of the last

septet in his ability to thread through those big kerbs at the

chicane. -- last sector. It is slightly down on the best overall

time. Maybe he can pull that back a little bit. Sebastian Vettel to get

into the top 10. He goes fastest. A fraction faster than a Fernando

Alonso. Mark Webber is trying to do this sector. Last year, he missed

out on Q3. This time, he has gone fourth quickest. You would think

that should be safe enough for him to get into the top ten, but it will

be competitive. The clock is ticking away. Esteban Gutierrez down to

10th, as he tries to get into the top ten for the first time. Nico

Hulkenberg is still in there, just. We are waiting to see improvements

from Force India. Lewis Hamilton is on the cusp. He is out on the track.

The first sector for Jean-Eric Vergne and Paul di Resta, exactly

the same. That is how competitive it is. Let's see what the time is like

for Esteban Gutierrez. He just holds on in 10th place, I think that could

be under threat from Force India. Yes, Paul di Resta goes eighth,

pushing Esteban Gutierrez down. Now, Toro Rosso. Daniel Ricciardo, not

exactly safe, but much quicker than Nico Hulkenberg. Lewis Hamilton has

been pushed down, so he needs a decent lap. Can Jean-Eric Vergne

outqualified his team-mate? Not quite, but look how close they are.

Adrian Sutil fails to get into the top ten, it is a blow for force in

the. Nico Hulkenberg cannot quite do it. Adrian Sutil will be

disappointed. You would expect Lewis Hamilton to make it through, yes, he

has gone fastest, right over 0.6 seconds. Mercedes were hiding their

pace this morning, and he has gone quick. What about McLaren? Jenson

Button is 14th, Sergio Perez is currently seventh, so Sergio Perez

has pushed Daniel Ricciardo out of the top ten. Jenson Button is down

in 14th place. This is coming into the last chicane. He locks up into

the turn. It is unlikely all of the time lost was in that last sector

alone. That is a story, there seems to have been an improvement from

McLaren to a certain extent. RADIO: We are 14th. It is the first time

this year that Jenson Button has failed to get into the top ten. For

Sergio Perez, only the second time he has achieved it, and the first

time he has beaten Jenson Button in qualifying. Perhaps after the

psychological boost of Bahrain. great performance. He has taken away

Lewis Hamilton's impressive lap, but where did that come from? It was an

amazing lap, and perhaps Mercedes are on for a hat-trick of pole

positions. Daniel Ricciardo knocked out in the last moment. Both Toro

Rosso cars knocked out. Disappointing for Adrian Sutil. Paul

di Resta did well. Both of the Sauber cars are out.

Not too much of a surprise about Sauber, but a big surprise with

McLaren. Sergio Perez in, Jenson Button out. We are none the wiser,

we are told that are good improvements, but Jenson Button has

not made the cut. It is ridiculous. I do not quite understand the gap.

He thought he would struggle to make Q1, he has said that all weekend,

but you would not have expected Sergio Perez to go faster. Your

first competitor is your team-mate, then you think about the other

people. At the moment, Sergio Perez has demonstrated he has the fight

and commitment to drag the car further up the field. Jenson Button

needs to catch up. In Q1, Pastor Maldonado was out of that session.

We can hear from him now. What a difference a year makes, you

started at the front of the grid, but now you are out in Q1. This is

Formula 1. A difficult time to Williams at the moment. We have been

working very hard, but we are a bit too lost at the moment in terms of

performance. The car is nowhere, it is very difficult to get 100% of the

potential that we saw last year. It will be a very tough race, so we

will see tomorrow what we can do. But it will be tough.

Yes. We have spoken about Williams, let's move on to Force India. Paul

di Resta seems like he is really on form at the moment. His fourth place

in the last race has such an impact. He is full of confidence, he is

buzzing about, he has had a commercial deal, that helps the

drivers feel confident, and he is on top of his game. News about a Felipe

Massa/Mark Webber incident. What is going on? We are on board with Mark

Webber. You would have to say it would need to be looked at by the

stewards, because there seems to be a bit of slowing down. What's Felipe

Massa keeping up his pace? But he is on the inside of the track. It is

one for the stewards. We will let you know what happens. Let's go back

to another driver that is out of Q1, Max Chilton.

Tell us about qualifying. I am quite encouraged, only a little bit of

Jules Bianchi. I came out just behind the Caterham cars. But I felt

the consequences of that later in the final sector. I just lost a bit

of time, and that is the difference. I am encouraged, and I am looking

forward to the race tomorrow. Commentary box, I wonder what you

thought of that incident with Mark Webber? What's Felipe Massa slowing

down? Unquestionably. That is the most

clear-cut of all of the incidents. Felipe Massa clearly did not get the

information that Mark Webber was coming. It is nothing malicious, it

is just a mistake, but if you hold up a car that is on a timed lap, the

stewards will give a penalty. Thank you. We had a chat about pole

position, who we felt was going to take it, and I threw Lewis Hamilton

in the mix. That was a cracker. touched everybody by surprise. In

Mercedes, the boss is here, and the arch protector of all of the people,

he knows how to win and bring the car to pole position. Do not be

surprised to see Lewis Hamilton there. We have seen it for the last

two races, they are great in qualifying but they struggle in the

race. But give cannot write them off, North Red Bull. Most people's

favourite is Fernando Alonso. Over a long distance, the Ferrari has a

very strong performance, and I expect them to be in it at the end

of the race. Here we go, here is Q1, the shootout.

The tension is building here. Fernando Alonso has the support of

the massed ranks of Ferrari fans, but pace out of nowhere from Lewis

Hamilton, tremendous pace, and it was the final sector that he really

seemed to gain. Nico Rosberg was also quick, but Lewis Hamilton was

blinding. An incredible performance, it is difficult to imagine what they

could have been holding back. The cars are working well at those

speeds, we were talking about how that bodes well for Monte Carlo, I

have always felt you get a good indication in the final sector. The

big question, can they convert that into a front row or a good

qualifying position? Can they hold on in the race, that is another

story will stop a lot of tyre degradation. Gary, we were impressed

by that lap time of Lewis Hamilton's, a big chunk faster than

anybody else, what your thoughts? mega lap. If you get through corner

free, then you have the confidence and the bike in the car, just that

long corner, once you get to number four, it is another right-hander, so

if they had the balance to get through there, that is what they

had. Last year, he was flying in McLaren, but he had the time taken

away from him. He was fastest by half a second, one though he has not

had a pole position here. Today might be the day. Mark Webber has

had a couple, Sebastian Vettel has never really shone around this track

in qualifying. The Ferrari fans, loyal to the brand. In terms of the

lap times, watching Kimi Raikkonen on his first run, it looks like he

is on a brand-new set of the medium tyres. What did you predict we could

see for pole position? Before the session, I thought 21.2, and it

still might be, but if Lewis Hamilton can hang another one, he

will be into the 20s. Do not count out Nico Rosberg, he was on the used

medium tyres and he went faster on them. That was 0.2 quicker than on

the brand-new tyres. A Mercedes front row is not out of the

question. That would be something. R: The temperatures have sorted

themselves out now, ten left front, 11 right front, and eight on the

rears. The last team to get an all front row here was the origins of

that team, in 2009, they have the front row. Let's see if Mercedes can

achieve that. We can see performance from Ferrari and Lotus. A lock-up

from Kimi Raikkonen. Let's watch the Lotus through here, it looks

balanced and tidy. A big commitment from the Iceman. A late shift down

in the middle of the corner. I would not have thought that would be his

normal tactic. That cost him anything? He is just a bit airway of

the fastest of all of the sect has from these qualifying sections.

have seen him on the front row once this year, can he do that on this

occasion? He has not made pole position since his return to Formula

1. He has done so here in the past for McLaren and Ferrari. He is syrup

or five seconds down on what Lewis Hamilton did in Q2. His final sector

not quite as impressive as Lewis Hamilton's earlier. Mercedes have

found something in the last qualifying section. Let's see if

they can unleash it again. RADIO: Police box this lap, look after the

tyres on the in lap. He is up on the time. He is up on Nico Rosberg, or

Kimi Raikkonen's time. There you are, Gary was spot on, Nico Rosberg

had performance in hand, he is the first into 1:20. Here is the

response from Fernando Alonso. He is slower than Mercedes. Suddenly,

Mercedes are looking very good for a hat-trick of pole positions will

stop will it be Nico Rosberg or Lewis Hamilton? Romain Grosjean has

been very fast in the first sector, but he does not sustain the pace. He

is losing a lot in the final sector. What can they be doing to gain so

much performance in the last sector? There has been talk about

the hydraulic link between the front and rear suspension. Something is

final sector last year. Filipe than Kimi Raikkonen bond the

initial round. -- on the initial round. The team is very happy with

that. They're just separated by a few hundredths of a second. This is

for the 5th round of the World Championship. Mercedes is on top at

the moment. We're still waiting for Lewis Hamilton to do a lap. Mark

Webber is a double winner in the past. Can he get Red Bull back up

there? They are the leaders in the Constructors' Championship at the

moment. Mercedes have been fast in qualifying in the last couple of

events and have not shown the race pace. They have put in a huge

amount of effort to improve on that. Only the drivers will know if they

think they have enough in hand. If they do not, there is nothing more

depressing than trying to attack a time which seems beyond your

balance or the cart is capable of giving you on the a day. -- the car.

Sebastian Vettel has been on the front row at a couple of times in

the past. He was 7th on the grid here last year. They did not have a

particularly good weekend. They had to change the front wing structures.

The Engineer of Kimi Raikkonen is rehearsing to be a lollipop man!

The track is completely empty. Not for much longer. Sebastian Vettel

is on a brand new set of the median compound tyre. It looks like Kimi

Raikkonen will go out as well. He does indeed. We are getting ready

for the shoot-out. Both have Renault engines. Who will end up

with the pole position? In terms of engine power on this circuit,

Renault are top dog. They have had nine pole positions, compared with

seven for Ferrari and four for Mercedes. That could change today.

Just a few litres of fuel on board. Enough to complete a casual out

apples dub look at that! -- alt lap. They will have to play around a bit.

With these tyres, you do not need to drive hard out laps. The main

concern is radiating heat into the brakes. There will be residual heat.

That will pull off. There will be a light touch in the cockpit. It

shows when they are at the correct temperature will start you do not

want to beat on cold brakes. -- temperature. All 10 cars are out on

track now. We will start with Sebastian Vettel. We are riding on

board with him. Down towards turn one, we will listen into his

throttle action. Up that is a shame. I wanted to see if he was truly

flat on that transition. It looked lovely none the less. It it looked

tidy and accurate. -- it looked tidy and accurate. Kimi Raikkonen

is even quicker. It is the final sector where Mercedes is so strong.

We have not seen that response from Lotus or Red Bull. Let's ride with

Kimi Raikkonen now. Let us listen in nine. Very late shift in the

middle of the corner. That is his style. He is coming down to the

second checkpoint. It is all about the final sector of the lap.

Sebastian Vettel is not quite as quick. If he can string all three

sectors together, maybe he can still challenge up front. Red Bull

will challenge to get pole position. He has had two pole positions here

already -- already this year. He goes third. We wait for Keke

Rosberg to come through. Lewis Hamilton also on track. He is not

up on his intermediate time. A not great in the first and second

sector. He is damp a 10th in each one. -- he is down. Let's see what

the lap time is like. That is the fastest. Could Nico Rosberg be on

for back to back pole positions? Lewis Hamilton goes second fastest.

Fernando Alonso is on a lap. I do not think it will be enough to

challenge for the front row of the grid. Filipe Massa has just gone

quick in the middle sector. That has to be disappointing for

Fernando Alonso. Filipe Massa there is one thousandth slower than

Fernando Alonso. Paul di Resta air goes to 10th. Mercedes has claimed

a hat-trick of pole positions. They have taken the entire front row in

front of the boss was it looks like they had been working their

strategy of concentrating on where they have been struggling this year

on brace pace. They have trained the fuel and gone out and taken

pole position. -- race pace. order, the South, Sebastian Vettel,

Lewis Hamilton, Sergio Perez and Paul di Resta. Well done! The last

two with Bahrain and now here in Barcelona, he has delivered the

stuck Lewis Hamilton will line up on the front row of the grade. --

he has delivered. It has been done quite a few times here in history.

Statistics say, if you start up front on the Spanish Grand Prix

circuit, you have a huge chance of winning the race. Michael

Schumacher won it from third. It is one of the only times it has been

won from anywhere other than the front row. Mercedes is in

tremendous shape going into tomorrow's Grand Prix. It is Nico

Rosberg who has delivered his third career pole. He has never qualified

in the top five before but he has delivered the 12th pole position

for Mercedes as a construct her and to have delivered the hat-trick as

well. This team has made a huge leap forward. That was a great

performance. Assured in the middle and last part of qualifying. He is

taking his time to get out and release himself. Sebastian Vettel,

and there is a steady. He is looking at the times. He is third

was a Kimi Raikkonen was in 4th place. -- he is third. Suddenly

Fernando Alonso is in 5th. Romain Grosjean is in 7th. Still a good

effort from Sergio Perez. Maybe the McLaren updates have worked a bit

because Sergio Perez has managed to acquire by the force India. Stories

all the way down the top 10. These two guys with team-mates when they

were cutting in their teenage years. They have delivered the front row

for the first time for Mercedes in the modern era. Fernando Alonso is

not too sad. Still a waif for the crowd. The record books strongly

favour a win from the front row at the Catalunya circuit. The racing

in 2013 has been far from A sensational qualifying session.

We can grab a quick word with Nicky ladder. A great days so far.

cannot complain. Lewis Hamilton did it already pulls up to have both

cars there, thank you to the teams and the drivers. Have a nice day!

The last time this was achieved was no less man then your own designer.

Can you actually pull of the win here tomorrow? We will do our best.

Let's wait and see it. Thank you. He is in trouble. You are in

trouble. Let's hear from Ross Brawn. Huge congratulations and in front

of the boss as well. We have not always given the boss a lot to

smile about. It is just qualifying. The big event is tomorrow. Tomorrow

is what counts. Some people have been surprised by the pace of the

car, particularly through sector three. You never know what others

are running. This weekend, we have been having to focus on Ray's work

because that is where we have been poor. We did a lot of work on fuel.

Our drivers are using the tyres very intelligently. Not pushing too

hard in sector one. Are you confident you had better tyre wear

than in Bahrain? Not entirely. The when not on top of it as much as we

work in the qualifying. -- we were not. Tomorrow it is what counts.

you think you can win? I do not know. Some teams are in better

shape on fuel. Maybe we have made enough progress overnight. Ross

said it, they are great in qualifying but they are still

struggling a little with race pace. They thought of us a bit today and

maybe they are fooling us tomorrow. We must not underestimate what

Lewis Hamilton has brought to this team. We can see how McLaren is

struggling as a result of losing him. They up on the front rows. We

know that 20 of the 22 races have been won from the front row. Let's

hear now from a very disappointed Jenson Button. The first time this

season you have not managed to fight it out. Tell us how you are

feeling. From where we are, the card did not feel too bad in the

first qualification. -- de car. It felt right. In the second, I did

not have the grip on my last run. We are having a look at it now as

to whether the pressures were set correctly. Maybe they were. Are you

surprised that Sergio Perez is still out there fighting? I am.

Compared with what I had been balance and pace. They did

everything right. Let's have a quick look at the lap of Jenson

Button and go to the commentary box. Can you take us through and tell us

what is going on with Jenson He had to open the steering in the

middle of the corner. No big event which would confirm what Jenson

Button was saying about the car feeling not too bad. Again, no

mistake so far up on this lap. Throwing it down into Turn seven at

100 miles an hour through the apex. Let's listen as he goes into nine.

The contrast between turn three, it looked like he had a bit of

understeer. That late shift down into first gear we get so used to

hearing now as they try to energise the floor as much as possible. A

lot of steering into turn 12. This is where Mercedes has been so

mighty this afternoon. Not pretty at low speed. It confirms what

Sergio Perez was saying. They are struggling for traction. He did not

seem at all confident as he bounced his wake over the kerbs. No big

mistake on that lap. Sergio Perez is the new man coming at McLaren.

Jenson Button needs to up his game. Behind the scenes, there is no doubt

there is a people in the management and board level. It filters down to

the people, they do not feel comfortable. Until they get cohesion

and get everybody pulling together, which they are not doing now, and it

might take somebody strong, but it needs to have one direction, and it

needs to happen quickly. You are talking about the structure. We talk

about the car and drivers, but it is a bigger goblin? You have got

diversification, you have got an automotive, it is a problem. McLaren

never had this when they were going forward under Ron Dennis. Hugely

successful, what has happened? I do not like a couple of key points.

It has been a huge workload from the team this weekend, one car in Q3,

what did you think? Firstly, in Q2, they did a fantastic job, a really

good run. We could have been tactical in Q3 and kept some new

tyres for the race, but he was driving so well, we thought we would

go for it. In Q3, he was 0.2 up at halfway, but he lost time at the end

of the lap. Given that our car is not quick enough, you would applaud

him what a great job he did. Disappointing for Jenson Button. We

have not looked at the data, but his tyre pressure might have on too

high. Hopefully, he would have gone through as well. We are fighting to

get through to Q3, it is not where we want to be. We have got to work

hard, we have been working hard, but we have got to carry on to get up to

the competitive levels we expect. Lots of hard work for lots of teams.

A quick prediction for tomorrow? Everybody would like to see what is

happening at Mercedes. They are both great. We are not going to have time

to go to the press conference in this show, but you can catch up with

the reactions and interviews online. Don't forget, following us,