Qualifying Highlights - Mexico Formula 1

Lewis Hamilton's opportunity to earn his third world title is before him

in Austin. Lights out and away we go, Rosberg against Hamilton,

Hamilton may have the chance to get up the inside. Rosberg trying to go

wheel-to-wheel. Rosberg squeezed down to fourth place. Hamilton

worked that to his advantage. The leaders have slowed down. This is

the worst scenario for a team when the two drivers come together.

Virtual safety car is over and Rosberg has got past Ricciardo.

Mercedes running one and two. Rosberg goes wide. Ricciardo makes

the move and Rosberg will be kicking himself there. Ricciardo having

another go to get past Hamilton and Daniel Ricciardo has found the space

and he has on past the Mercedes. Rosberg having a go down the

inside, can he hold on? Will Hamilton fightback on the exit? They

have to give each other space as team-mates, Rosberg has got past

him, we do not see that often. Rosberg will reclaim the lead,

getting past Daniel Ricciardo. Remember, if it were to finish this

way, Lewis Hamilton would not be world champion, not with Rosberg

winning the race. Rosberg -- Hamilton pulls alongside, it is

Daniil Kvyat, he is into the wall. Surely that means the safety car is

out. This might be a lifeline for Hamilton. You will have ten months

remaining, keep it nice and clean. A bit of wheel spin on the restart as

he launches it, Rosberg has made a mistake. Hamilton has taken the

lead, it means Hamilton is where he needs to be to win the championship

now. Lewis Hamilton has won his world World Championship, he is the

20 15th world champion, he has done it in the USA -- the 2015 world

champion. World champion, you have done it mate. How good does it

sound, three-time world champion? Rightist moment of my life, time to

celebrate, thank you. To my family, I love you all. Here is the man of

the moment. We said he was relaxed in this championship campaign but

now you can see that release of emotion. This is a moment of

celebration, clearly in the class of the field race car and he has

delivered. He will make the most of this now. There has been no doubt

this year that Lewis Hamilton has dominated 2015. He certainly has,

his 10th win of the year sealed the deal to match Ayrton Senna's triple

World Championship crown and here we are at the Autodromo Hermanos

Rodriguez circuit, 4.3 kilometres, a revamped track in the south-east of

the sprawling metropolis that is Mexico City. The first time Formula

1 has been here since Nigel Mansell's victory in 1992. What a

weekend we are in for and what emotional scenes we saw last weekend

in Austin. I do not think Hamilton could believe what happened to him

and he has not had time to let it sink in? He said he parted on the

Monday rather than the Sunday and then coming here, that is the

downside of winning the championship so early, if there is a downside. Of

the three championships he has one, is this the most straightforward? It

has, the most dominant, the most dominant car of this generation and

he has hit home the advantage he had over Rosberg. He got top qualifying

and he has had a pretty straightforward run of victories.

With it be difficult, he has reached his lifelong goal of equalling

Ayrton Senna, will it be hard to get the fourth victory? I do not what it

is like to have one. We had a fantastic interview with him

afterwards, he showed the passion for driving that came through. That

is what will drive him on to the fourth as if it is his first. He

will look back on his achievements but he is such a driven racing

driver that in the coming years we know he will be in good hands with

Mercedes. A look at the standings so we can see him at the top, look at

the battle for second. Four points separating Nico Rosberg and

Sebastian Vettel. Looking for a touch of fan power

this weekend, Sergio Perez, in his home Grand Prix. Constructors

champions Mercedes are looking for their 43rd victory here. Force India

are indeed in the news this week, let us get the round-up. One of

Formula 1 's worst kept secrets was made official last night when

Esteban Gutierrez was revealed as Haas racing's second driver next

season, he has had a year out as Ferrari's the driver and will line

up with Romain Grosjean in the new American team. We expect to have a

good car, we are going to be very focused to achieve what we want to

achieve next season. Can you be more competitive than with Sauber? Yes, I

am convinced of that. Red Bull's 2016 engine saga goes on, linked to

every manufacturer on the grid and Niki Lauda, who wanted them to link

up with Mercedes is now telling them that their best option is to stay

with Renault for a 10th consecutive season. Mercedes, Ferrari, have all

said no, Honda. These things can happen, the problem now is that they

cancelled their Renault contract and from what I can see, Renault is the

last engine now to be available. They have to sort it out because it

is one minute to 12, time is working against them and I hope they find a

solution before Brazil. Force India could be rebranded as the Martin

next year if a rumoured deal with the sports car manufacturer can be

reached. They have long been looking at Formula 1 because they wanted and

beat alongside Redcar rivals McLaren and Ferrari. It is a great brand but

it is premature for me to say anything further. Would you still be

very much involved in Formula 1? Absolutely, I am not going anywhere.

The management at Manor Marussia is set to change after news that John

Booth, Graham Lowden and Bob Bell have tendered their resignations.

The team first appeared as Virgin racing in 2010 and they are not

commenting on the reasons for the split. It is rumoured they have

fallen out with the team over Stephen spit -- Stephen Fitzpatrick.

Let us talk about Esteban Gutierrez, over our shoulder, we finally know

he has signed for Haas racing along with Romain Grosjean. It is a great

line-up, talented drivers but what is interesting with their team, they

have put all the technology they can from Ferrari and now they have taken

their test and reserve driver so I think they are the best prepared

team coming into Formula 1. Mexican fans will be thrilled that they will

have two drivers now. We have had a fantastic welcome to the city, you

can understand why they call it the Mexican wave enthusiasm they have

all of the teams but especially Sergio Perez and now they can

celebrate having to drivers on the grid next year. They have been

charging his name all weekend. They are full of beans which is difficult

at this altitude, 2440 metres, higher than the village of Valder is

there and you feel it going upstairs, you get out of breath. I

do not think the drivers will find it too challenging, a 71 lap race

but a fairly low speed circuit. The engine will suffer because you do

not get as much bang for your buck, the electrical element is not

affected at all but you have less downforce as the air thins, the cars

are going much faster on the straight rather than -- even though

they are running mode downforce, a high-speed circuit, 220 mph into the

first corner. Let us go through some of the key features. They have

retained a number of elements on the previous track, some of the great

races of the past we have waxed lyrical about. The White area is the

old circuit, they have straightened out the middle section to allow for

more run-off but we come to the first section, 220 most brow in the

braking zone, a big challenge for the drivers. We join Fernando Alonso

and McLaren who are having a more competitive outing, look for them to

knock on the door of the top ten. A fascinating section, taking

Maldonado's alternative line, this is Bottas in the Williams, getting

at with the rear wing not reattached and going for a high-speed spin.

Into the middle sector, a fantastic selection of corners but there is

low grip. This is Nico Rosberg going into turn seven, he goes into aid,

than into nine. Those who are good at counting will know that number

ten comes after that before opening out through 11 and down to the last

section of this race track. This is the fans favourite and they have

done something special here, putting the podium here rather than being on

the start finish straight, this is a great natural amphitheatre where the

cars will be speeding -- seen at low speed for some time. A terrific

showpiece but they are going quite slowly through there. Look at that,

look at the grandstands built around, it is a much tighter version

of the natural stadium we have at Hockenheim in Germany. It has been

renamed the Mansell curve in homage to that great party did an go hard

burger back in the day. Gladiatorial section of 12,000 fans, fantastic.

Three practice sessions this week in, let us get the latest news. It

never rains but plausible Jenson Button and this is one of those

unfortunate weekends when nothing has gone right for him, limited

running in all three practice sessions and a sensor is issued in

the final practice session has required a second engine change of

the weekend. They have not finished it and they are in no hurry because

they are not going to run during this qualifying session, they will

focus on the race tomorrow because he already has a 50 place grid

penalty. Also worked at Ferrari where Kimi Raikkonen had his final

practice session cut short by a sensor issue as well. They are

hoping to get him out for the start of Q1. No Jenson Button in this

session, we will be reporting from the pits and Formula 1 is back in

Mexico. A British driver took pole position

the first time this track was used. Will Lewis Hamilton earned top spot

on F1's returned to Mexico quest much down to Turn 1 come the first

few cars. Massive grand slam 's on every corner. -- grandstands. The

second part of the lap a fairly long straight down to a sequence of

corners, turns four, five and six. A mass of grandstands surrounding the

track. All newly resurfaced. They accelerate out of there and then

down into the revised Ss. This used to be one of the most challenging

tracks anywhere, a bit more simple now, but hopefully as the grip

develops it was to be a fun place for drivers? They have slowed the

apex is down a little bit. The old track had curbs like you would see

on high Street, which made the car fly into the air. Modern Formula 1

and the safety requirements means we have seen a lot of that character of

the racetrack disappear. I still think it poses a great challenge for

the drivers. I think this represents more of an Indianapolis style

racetrack, they have had to compromise to join the major front

Street. It will pose challenges in to Turn 1, but sadly it means we are

going to the cars not really displaying high speed potential in

those corners behind the pit is. What an atmosphere we are getting,

that is also key to this layout. They are cheering for Sergio Perez,

it is tremendous. Tom, you are down in the pits. Another beautiful, big

grandstand. I'm sure you are seeing a lot of support for parents. Tell

us what we can see and what the target time is? Perez cannot do

anything without a massive roar following him where ever he goes. A

wonderful atmosphere. We have nigh on 100,000 people watching this

session. As the cut-off times, it is very difficult to predict. This

racetrack is changing all the time. Look at the cars now, all out on the

medium tyre, which is not the tyre most of them will get through to Q2

on. They are still doing my homework. But based on what we have

seen so far the cut-off to get to to be 1:21.9. Thank you very much.

Sergio Perez continues around on the lap. These tires lasting well. They

can put several laps together without losing lap time. That is a

good point, they will be doing multiple laps to try and get the

circuit and tyre to work in harmony. We know Lewis Hamilton has been told

by his race engineer to go for a 3 lap run and then a cool down lap.

Apps running more fuel than they normally would. A relatively short

lap, which means we will have 71 laps tomorrow. Felipe Nasr has set

the early benchmark. He and his team-mate, Ericsson, will be the

ones looking to get out of Q1. We know Jenson Button will not make it

through, will not start this session at all. At the moment the Saubers

are using the soft tyre. Bottas now improve on that. Williams goes

faster at this stage. They are hoping that Kimi Raikkonen will come

out onto the track. We did see the engine fire up a little while ago

that we gather Ricciardo is coming out on the soft tyre as well.

Interesting, going straight out on the softer tyre. Perez goes second

quickest as we go into the Lotus Garrard. Pastor Maldonado about to

come out onto the circuit. The difference between the soft and

medium tyre is expected to be about 1.5 seconds, in terms of lap

performance. That is a big gap, a second would be

the normal offset Pirelli would be looking for. I think it highlights

how green the racetrack is. A big slide there from Felipe Nasr as he

comes into this stadium section. In 216, they still have to pay

attention, the pit lane entry will cause some issues, being so tight,

on race day. They have to pay attention as they accelerate out of

the final corner onto this hugely long start -finish straight into a

challenging braking zone. Hamilton is fastest and Rosberg just went

second fastest. They are using the medium tyres. Quite likely Mercedes

will get their two cars through on this tyre. They may not need to go

to that allocation of soft tyres to get through this first part of

qualifying, saving those for later on. We are hearing Stevens has been

reporting on the radio to his steamy has a sticky throttle. Remember we

had that issue few weeks ago from Rosberg. Making his way back to

pits, cautiously, to see if they can rectify that. It looks like we will

have a few people dropping out of this first part of qualifying, not

many cars taking part. Losing Jenson Button already. We hope to get Kimi

Raikkonen out there. But I do not think it will offer the opportunity

for the man a macro -- Manor Marussia team to get their drivers

through. Ericsson, the Swedish driver, trying to put behind him a

couple of not so good events. He had an electrical failure in Austin and

it put him out of the race in the USA. And he crashed with Hulkenberg

in Russia. He has been out in Q1 for the last four Grand Prixs. Rosberg

is quicker than Hamilton. As we said, the tyres get better and

better over a series of laps. You can expect to see this all the time.

Meanwhile Massa fastest in the speed trap. 226 mph. We are seeing top

speeds faster than at Monza despite the teams running a higher level of

downforce here, all due to the reduced density of the air at

altitude. Perez goes up cross the line, six faster. You saw him having

to work the steering wheel as he came out through Turn 16. His father

watching on, equally a celebrity in these parts. In Formula 1 for some

time, about 30 years. Good job with the car, thanks guys. Same from me,

thank you. That is nice that both Kimi Raikkonen and his engineer with

thanking the mechanics are getting the car ready. They have sent

Raikkonen out on the set of soft tyres because he did not get any

running this morning so he doesn't know how the track feels. Exactly.

1.5 seconds is a huge amount of time. The Bottas lock-up but

superbly picked up the apex. Kimi Raikkonen, as you say, a nice touch,

showing his human side. If you get him a Christmas present don't expect

him to be all smiles and jumping around when he opens it. That is

about as much appreciation as you'll get from him. A good lap from

Bottas, not far off the pace. Yes, beautifully offbeat brake. You can

see the rotation of the wheel, manages to pick up the apex. If you

do not damage the tyre, it shows EU have judged it to perfection.

Raikkonen sixth fastest at the moment, one point 21.9. Grosjean had

a problem in second free practice yesterday afternoon but the car is

running well and done almost the same lap time as Raikkonen, just a

couple of thousands difference. The lap times are going to be very close

to one another. A perfect example here. You saw Vettel slightly miss

the apex at turn ten. What happens on these secreted curbs, it

vibrates. You get some great slow motion images of how that looks. All

that vibration through the axle and the wheel sees the brakes dropped

back a little bit. It is an interesting feeling for the driver.

It is all well but engineer saying dampen your brakes, but it gives

away speed and you fight so hard for speed, a dab of the brakes can take

away from that. It is that constant mental battle behind the wheel of

trying to make the decisions, those calculated risks that are a large

part of the sport. Hulkenberg into the stadium section. Getting quite a

lot of support from the Mexican fans, being a team-mate of Sergio

Perez. With three and a half minutes to go Hulkenberg is in the drop

zone, I do not think that will last long. Yes, into eighth place,

pushing Perez down but I don't think that will be for long. Maldonado 11.

Those drivers around the 1:21.9, Alonso is going to be the

interesting one, to see if he is going to be able to drag himself out

of this first part of qualifying. Raikkonen has done so already.

Button we know is out, not contesting this. The two Manor

Marussia driver is unlikely to make it. Stevens had that throttle

problem at the start of the session. They seem to have solved that. Back

out on track and improving his lap times. Verstappen here, a pretty

good lap, he goes six. He has had a little off time during free

practice. Alonso. When they commit to the apex sometimes the rear axle

steps out on them. Alonso at the moment in 16th. What is looking like

-- what looks like a promising free practice is not translating now.

Meanwhile we have the Mercedes's heading out. Rosberg on fastest of

all. It is more about getting experience on the option tyre. The

team feel they have done enough and quite clearly displayed in the lap

times, to get through qualifying, but it is about gathering

information on these tyres. Rosberg coming to the end of the

lap. It is, 1:20.4. Vettel was on a good lap moment ago he decided to

abandon it and coming to the pits. Romain Grosjean has got some work to

do here. Only just in there, in 15th. In the first three corners

Kimi was holding me up. -- Kvyat. Easy to catch traffic here. Grosjean

running over the very edge of the kerb at that point. He is coming

into the tight and twisty section. The first part it is easy to run

wide. He does indeed. We thought Hamilton would be going out but he

hasn't. Hamilton comfortable where he is, as Grosjean comes across the

line. It is not an improvement, look at that. He could be knocked out by

Sauber. Nasr is two tenths of a controller. He will have to find a

bit there. It is not impossible for Nasr to find that. Got up to the top

of that curb and it is not a lowered, so rated curb, it is bolted

to the racetrack and completely flat. We have seen drivers straddle

it and then lose the steering. Rosberg getting out of the way of

traffic, cutting across the apex on the grass, an extreme way of getting

out of the way of traffic. The chequered flag is out. Alonso has

failed to make it through to Q2. It was not enough, try to get more on

the last lap, but it was not enough to beat Romain Grosjean. Keep an eye

on Nasr, he could displace Grosjean. Stevens, can he go quicker than his

team-mate Alexander Rossi? No, but it was close. Alexander Rossi has

now qualified him on this occasion. Rossi has been to Mexico City

before, on the old version of the track, in a former BMW car. A

slightly different equations are driving a Formula 1 car. Nasr has

crossed the line are not managed to displace Grosjean. Ericsson has made

it. He has done a good job in the other Sauber. 10th fastest. But

Alonso will play no further part in this. RADIO: Still a few cars to

finish but we are piece 16 -- P16. Fernando Alonso, Felipe Nasr,

Alexander Rossi and Will Stevens are out in the first part of qualifying.

Jenson Button did not go out at all. A tough weekend for him so far. We

have done many interviews over the years, I am not sure if I have done

a qualifying interview before qualifying. A rotten weekend so far?

It is not qualifying for me. Even worse. Exactly. It has been a tricky

one. We have run two different engines is weekend. On the engine

this morning we had a system failure. A misfire. They have to

change the engine to make sure everything is OK for tomorrow. Which

means I won't qualify. You have a record number of penalties but

ultimately it means you start from the back. It is going to be a tough

race out there because it has been a tricky circuit? Yeah, it is a tricky

circuit and when you haven't done any running, and I haven't done any

high fuel running, it will be a difficult race. I am still looking

forward to it. You always look forward to it. Whatever happened in

qualifying I was still going to start last anyway because of the

penalties. As a racing driver you wanted out there and do the best you

can and get as high up as you possibly can but that is impossible

today, this weekend. No Jenson Button and no Fernando Alonso

through to Q2 but we can speak to the newly signed driver Esteban

Gutierrez. Test driver for Ferrari. Congratulations. Were you listening

to the cheers Sergio Perez was getting?

To see the whole crowd in Mexico enjoying the Grand Prix, it makes me

feel very proud to have this kind of event. Especially because the people

of Formula 1 that are coming from other countries, and seeing how they

enjoyed the experience of Mexico makes me feel happy. It is fair to

say already that this Grand Prix is a successful Mexico? Yes, for me it

has exceeded my expectations. I do not know about the rest of the

people but it seems everybody is really happy and there is a great

atmosphere in the paddock. The people are cheering the Mexican

drivers so I feel really happy. I want to congratulate all of the

people were that were involved to make this happen. We still have both

drivers in for Ferrari, we wish you all the best for next season. Thank

you very much for having me here and I appreciate your support. Let us

get back to the track. COMMENTATOR: Nico Rosberg was the fastest in the

first part of qualifying but now they are aiming for the top ten,

Toro Rosso and Force India will be hopeful of getting into that top

ten, especially with Sergio Perez. It will not be easy against the

might of Mercedes, Red Bull, Ferrari and Williams expected to get through

to the top ten themselves. The tension begins to mount at this

stage, Hamilton out early, he was third fastest in qualifying one.

Sebastian Vettel was pretty close to Rosberg's time. Do not discount

Ferrari, Singapore was the key one where Ferrari really came alive and

they snatched a surprise pole position there. They did, although

it is a temporary track in single ball, the road is used on a daily

basis and the extra tarmac helped. The early days and weeks on the new

surface, some oil comes out of it, the key thing is the difference in

temperature, it is 32 degrees are so relatively cool conditions but to be

expected at this altitude. We have enjoy to the welcome so far, we have

seen good stability for that Toro Rosso from Verstappen. He did not

have that yesterday. That is just a fraction slower than he did in the

first part of qualifying. Daniel Ricciardo was quick this morning,

third fastest and he goes quickest for the moment. We have seen faster

times from Mercedes and straightaway, Hamilton goes faster

on eight 1:20.1. He did not run the soft tyre for a fast lap in Q1 in

the end so it is the first and we have seen him on that tyre. And we

have seen him on that tyre. Evolving so it is difficult to work at the

target times for the top ten? It is tricky. One driver out there now not

going for a time, doing some race preparation, Kimi Raikkonen has gone

past on the medium tyre looking to get some long mileage in, we will

have to wait and see what he can do until later in Q2 but with this drop

in track temperature it will be a moving target for the teams, they

tell me we are looking at a 1.21 dead to get through to Q3. Hamilton

already under that with his first run. This is Sergio Perez, half a

second down on the fastest. Hamilton in the 19s now, the first some we

have seen that so far this weekend. Teams are able to prepare for the

thin air and the altitude here, seeing all those rooms completely

and simulate the altitude, they know this has been coming for some time,

bit like we have in Brazil as well, a higher altitude and they prepare

as much as they can to make sure they neutralise the effects.

Hulkenberg is over in sixth. The teams in late is prior to coming

here predicted pole position to be at the 1.19 bracket which is where

Hamilton currently is but after practice yesterday, the track was so

slippery that people were saying there was no way they could get down

to that so it is interesting how much the track is ramping up when

every lap. Bottas goes across the line doing a 1:20.7, it is different

from the last time we were here, Nigel Mansell taking proposition on

a 1:16.3 on the old layout, that is interesting because the last corner

was much faster, the track distances not much different but a much slower

section in the final part of the lap and only three seconds away from

that. And yorker via it has done a good lap to go third fastest,

fastest of anyone in the middle sector but missing out on the first

sector in particular. Red Bull were fastest in free practice three in

the middle sector as well with Daniel Ricciardo. They clearly have

good downforce in the middle section is but a little bit off in the first

sector which is all about straight line speed. Massa saw his team-mate

locking up first time around. He is taking a much earlier apex,

interesting to see come the end of the lap, any signs of oversteer but

he is taking a penalty in the exit, having to work the wheel a bit more,

just ninth at the moment, about eight tenths slower than Bottas at

this stage. It could be crucial, it will be tight at the lower end of

the top ten. Maldonado and Raikkonen in the bottom part of the group. He

is not going for a real qualifying run here, he is trying to do some

work towards the race itself will stop interesting that Ferrari with

Vettel did many more naps on the medium tyre in Friday practice than

any other team. They seem to have set their mind to getting this tired

to work best of all and it was effective. Vettel's long pace was

impressive. A slightly different tactic to the other teams and doing

work on race setup. Relatively late in this shorter part of qualifying

for Vettel, confident he will do a time to get him into the top ten.

You get a feeling they are still using this for testing and research,

they can't actually alter anything on the car other than settings

available, Raikkonen had a spin there, I think that is at Turn 1.

Down over 220 mph as he hits the brakes, turns in and immediately

loses the react so. Which is used to capture some of that energy that has

been wasted through heat and the motor generator unit, pumping the

power into the battery pack so it could well be a little bit too much

harvesting going on in the braking phase. You would have thought his

rallying experience when he had his sabbatical from Formula 1 would have

helped him there. Wonder macro I wonder how long it will be before

they bring him in. He kept it running and he will be back in,

presumably they will get him on the soft tyre fairly soon with six

minutes to go in the session. It is 100 Grand Prix since Kimi Raikkonen

was last on pole position and I do not think it will happen here

either. -- judging by the day he has had so far. He has had a lot of

races since each has had a proposition, 2008 in France was the

last time. Most of the front runners in the pits at the moment, we will

see the group at the low end fighting to get into the top ten who

are focused on what they are doing. Here comes Carlos Sainz, a good

result last and add in Austin and he goes eighth at the moment, a pretty

good lap. That is very much the cut-off area but what will he be

able to do? He had to start at the back in Austin after he crashed in

qualifying. He has had a series of accidents in either practice or

qualifying, he had won in single ball, an accident in practice in

Russia, he needs to put that behind him and get a clean qualifying

session today. Vettel going on to a good lap now. Clear track ahead,

Grosjean is down at Turn 4, so looking to get a tidy start to the

lap. He looks very cautious through two. Did not look like he was on a

hot lap there as he went through that turn. He does have BRS open,

looking at that sector time -- DRS. Three times slower -- three tenths

slower than Nico Rosberg, the fastest so far. Certainly enough to

get him in the top ten. Particularly in this middle sector, such a

difficult section for them because a Grand Prix car comes alive at 100

mph and a number of these corners are just below that speed. You put

together the fact that the track itself is quite green and you find a

very thin line with which to place your tyre. He has done a maker

middle sector. He is clearly going to get into the top ten but he has

set the fastest middle sector of anybody, let us see where it puts

him overall. Kimi Raikkonen just walking down the pits, could be the

end of the session for him. Two tenths of a second slower than

Hamilton, very impressive run from him but for his team-mate, Kimi

Raikkonen, it looks as though the session is over. They managed to

change the engine on his car but presumably there must be another

problem and he will play no further part. He is in the drop zone and

will not go through to the top ten. He had come to the garage without

the car so he must be stopped somewhere down the pit lane and

there is an area for weighing the car. Try to use the new tyre grip in

all areas. You would think that would be an obvious thing to do but

at least Marcus at Ericsson admitting it was not a great lap for

him, trying to improve down in 13th place. We know Raikkonen is out

already, Grosjean again is on the bubble, as he was in Q1. He is

currently 10th, Massa 11th, science, trying to put together a better lap,

maybe needing to find a 10th or two to be secure in the top ten. It's

this lack an improvement? It is not. His previous lap was slightly

better. He is still very much in the danger zone, Perez and Hulkenberg in

the Force India cars are up ahead. You would think Massa is a danger

because he has to be capable of a bit more looking at what Bottas has

done so far. We would like to see more pace from the Williams car,

meanwhile, Ericsson, is improving but is coming to finish the lap

here. It is not enough, Verstappen improved but also not enough, 11th,

being outqualified by his team-mate, Carlos Sainz. We hear there is some

rain falling as well just to add to the fun and games. Like jocks will

not affect their lap speed but if it comes down any more than it will. It

looks from the commentary box window that the science of the job I can

see, that will get the drivers's attention. More than a light

sprinkling. That could be difficult for Max Verstappen to get into the

top ten, just a minute and three quarters to go. Currently, Sainz is

in there. Still plenty of space on tyres. Spots of rain. He is

reporting the first spots of rain as well. Perez has made himself

slightly more secure with a better lap to go fifth, Ricciardo in six,

Bottas in seven, Hulkenberg in eight, not out of danger. Sainz is

night, Grosjean, 10th, Verstappen, 11th, just a few thousandths would

be enough to get him through. Massa currently in 12th, he needs to put

together a decent lap. Check the split time here, is he up on 10th

place? No, he is way outside. He might get one more lap in, he will

cross the line before the chequered flag comes out so he will have one

more opportunity. Verstappen has just crossed the line and has gone

on to one more flying lap so it will all come down to the dying moments

of the session again. A very wide line as he comes to the last turn

and he will be set up now, he knows it is all or nothing, gets across

the line with a good 30 seconds before the chequered flag. But you

lose a bit of confidence when there are spits of rain on your visor.

Into the apex, nice and tidy. They look deceptively slow on that camera

angle in turn to. Maldonado not good enough, one more lap, I do not think

he will be able to get through. Hulkenberg, waiting to see him

through, good improvement right Bottas, he will be safe, well ahead

of Massa. You would think Massa had the pace in the car to get in the

top ten but he needs to deliver on this lap he is on right now. He is

currently down in 12th place. Grosjean making a late charge here,

Clooney not going to improve, he is the man in most danger in 10th place

and he could lose that. Felipe Massa could lose it to this man as well.

His first sector is not better, the middle is an improvement, he comes

off the last corner but he gets up into eighth in the dying moments.

Grosjean has been pulled out, Sainz in danger of being pushed out, a

10th of a second faster than his team-mate, is Felipe Massa going to

push Carlos Sainz out? It will be close. Trying to get out of the last

corner and he has done it, going six, Carlos Sainz pushed out at the

last moment and I don't think Maldonado will do anything, he is on

a slow lap. Verstappen has just managed to get into the top ten, a

brilliant lap by the youngster, Carlos Sainz nearly did enough but

the margins are absolutely tiny. Seven thousandths of a second for

that 10th place. My goodness, very close but in terms of the grid it

will not make that much difference. I would imagine the Toro Rosso 's

won't be separated by many but it is still good kudos format 's

Verstappen, to make it into the top ten. Hamilton fastest in the session

and Vettel and Rosberg with Bottas fourth and Marcus Ericsson unable to

go through into the next part, the top ten shoot out in qualifying. Of

course, we also know that sadly Kimi Raikkonen is going to play no

further part. Ferrari looking towards the race and hoping they

will have a very good race pace. The drivers are playing no further part

in this are Carlos Sainz, will end up 11 on the grid not allow for

penalties. 12 for Romain Grosjean, 13th, pastor model Amado. Then

Ericsson and Kimi Raikkonen. Looking at the replay of Pastor Mao

DiNardo, a big sideways moment. That is right, that is where we saw Max

Verstappen lose it in free practice. Undoubtedly cost him time. Hamilton

faster so far in qualifying, but will he be able to do that when we

get into the top ten shoot out? Carlos Sainz edged out in the final

seconds. We can hear from him now. Carlos, 7000 of a second is what

splits you from talking to me or being on the track, very tight? Very

tight, as we expected. We clearly got it a bit wrong with the timing

of the new tyre. We put it on way too early, when the track was

improving, and at the end I was sitting there trying to improve my

lap time without any tyre life. When everything is so tight every detail

counts. We got it wrong in that sense. But anyway, we are starting

11th, we can choose the tyre for the start, not a bad position. How was

your long run pace looking for tomorrow? Quite decent, a bit better

on the short run pace. Hopefully we will have a good race tomorrow. We

heard Kimi Raikkonen had a brake problem which is why he did not

complete the session. He will be getting a new gearbox and he will

get a 5 place grid penalty. Time for Q3. Clouds building up and rain is

in the air. The teams keen to get their drivers out. Hamilton at the

top of the queue. He will have two sets there for several seconds

before the session gets underway. He engages the gears and will be

underway any second now. Lewis Hamilton looking to take his 50th

career pole. He has had a bit of a drought, by his standards, since he

has last had a pole. The Italian Grand Prix was the last time he had

pole position. Nico Rosberg has had a decent run, a hat-trick of pole

positions recently, but Lewis would love to be the first man to take

pole on the return to the Mexico circuit and follow-on from Nigel

Mansell, on pole position the last time Formula 1 cars were here.

Sebastian Vettel still in the hunt, perhaps. Ferrari have had one pole

at this track in the past, ack in 1970. They also had a couple of

wins, Alain Prost in 1990. A lot of great history about this track. Even

though it might be a new layout, it is the passion from the Mexican

found, many of the fans here today might have come here as kids in the

past. And they have continued that enthusiasm for Formula 1 and it has

just come alive immediately with this first revived Grand Prix.

Lovely to see. They are into that stadium section now, looked down

upon by thousands and thousands of people. Building up to the climax of

this qualifying and Lewis Hamilton will be the first to give us a time.

He will have lost quite a bit of temperature from his tyres sitting

in the pit lane but he has a nice clear, open track. Only ten cars

allowed to be out there. You don't have the same anxiety about finding

space on the track. Next man up is Vettel. Saying that, Perez and

Hulkenberg have not gone out as yet. Vettel is just exiting Turn 11 as we

see Hamilton come down to turn four. Deep breaking and into this stadium

section here, through five. Turn sixes classed as one corner but it

is pretty much two Apex is, the first fair and then the second.

Excel rating out towards turn seven. Very important not to go wide on the

exit. Important to get the first Apex at seven just right and at turn

ten we have seen a number of cars running wide. You can see him

working for tyres and struggling for grip as he tries to get the

temperature. Let's see how he completes the lap. He has a little

lock-up, just about manages to get back in the corner so will not have

lost too much time as a result. The last corner, trying get on the power

early enough. The back end does move around a little bit. He did a 1.19

earlier, it is a 1.21. Whatever it is about to be beaten by Rosberg. A

good lap by Nico Rosberg, 1:19.6. Still some time to go. Getting laps

in before any potential rainfall. Verstappen goes third fastest, head

of Ricciardo. Both unused tyres, I think. We can keep an eye on Kvyat,

goes faster than both of them. He goes into third position. The gap to

Mercedes indicates it is going to be either Rosberg or Hamilton to take

pole. Hamilton has improved in his first sector but Rosberg has also

improved. A 10th down already. Didn't look like a tidy first lap.

Looking like he is starting to build the grip and finding momentum now,

but it does seem like that momentum is with Rosberg. There is a stride

about him, and impatience to get out there and deliver. Again, Rosberg

quicker than Hamilton in the middle sector. This morning it was the

third time that was their fastest. The tyres hanging together very well

over a series of laps. Let's wait and see. Hamilton does a 1:19.6.

Rosberg appears to be going quicker and it is a 1:19.4. And that

distance between the cars, Rosberg will get a decent tow.

Quite a tidy drive. Can Williams get up their quest might yet they can,

third place for the moment, beating the Red Bull of Kvyat. It could be

between Red Bull, Ferrari and Williams to get that third position.

It will be a very tight contest. Still waiting to see what Vettel can

do. Just one Ferrari in the top ten, after we lost Kimi Raikkonen. Still

no times recorded for Perez and Hulkenberg in the Force Indias.

Let's see what Vettel does. Can he challenged the Mercedes at all? Not

that far off. Yes, fastest of all in that last sector. Some opportunity

there. Box at the end of this lap. Another set of the soft tyre that

they have available. They are coming in relatively early, to make sure

again that they can get a decent run of laps. Tom, what is the weather

like where you are, any rain in the air? Definitely rain in the air but

not falling where I am in the pit lane. The wind is picking up, which

could play havoc with the car set up. A lot for them to be thinking

about as they go on to the final set of tyres. Building up towards the

climax of qualifying. Rosberg and Hamilton both back in the pits.

Vettel is currently third, and not going quickly at this point. The act

is on a lap which may see him improve. It seems to me in the past

the Mercedes driver who gets first blood delivers the time in the first

part of qualifying, is able to maintain it towards the end. The

pressure, if there is such a thing on a three-time world champion,

having celebrated just six days ago, the pressure does seem to rest

on Hamilton's 's shoulders. He needs a clean lap. Rosberg at that

opportunity to be pulled through the air, but you mentioned he was behind

Hamilton when they went out last time. I wonder if Hamilton might not

be too keen to help his team-mate with a little bit of a slipstreaming

is -- slipstream in the same way. Daniil Kvyat nine seconds away.

Looking like it might be a tight contest with Ferrari. When engine

modes are at their best. His entry to the pit lane, just highlighting

the difficulty on that tight line. The car is loaded to the left, the

Mercedes of Rosberg locking up on the inside right. He will not be

worried about this set of tyres, will set on earth -- he will start

on the one to used in Q2. Daniel Ricciardo slightly out of sequence.

He seems to have done something slightly different way to his

team-mate Daniil Kvyat. They have been pretty well matched throughout

the weekend so far. Ricciardo slightly quicker than Kvyat this

morning but to be at had the edge little bit through qualifying this

afternoon. Perez and Hulkenberg I get to run in this session. One

final glory run in the dying minutes, let's hope they are going

out with only four minutes to go. Pleased to have both cars in the top

ten but if they can challenge the likes of Williams... Verstappen is

in the top ten as well. We need to see what he can do. He is currently

seventh fastest. Ricciardo, this is a crucial lap for Daniel Ricciardo

full study will probably get a couple of laps on these soft tyres

but he needs to get a good mentor them and rhythm going on this flying

lap and try to build up for the second one. Tidy so far as goes

through four. 20 of clean track aired of him, no cars to get in the

way. Double apex at six. Let's see how he goes through this Middlesex.

-- this middle sector. You can get yourself back online for ten but he

will have dropped some time. Ricciardo led some laps in Austin

last time, seven laps, but that was in wet conditions on the

intermediate tyres when Red Bull well working effectively. Never had

a pole position in his career. It won't happen in Mexico, but how far

up can he get? Going well in the Middlesex but a massive amount of

time off in the first sector. Is up there with Kvyat might guess, by

thousands of the second. He still has another couple of laps he can do

on these tyres. Losing seven tenths of a second alone in the first

sector. Just highlighting their lack of horsepower. Hamilton and Rosberg

are out on track, not together this time. Rosberg has just got past

Perez. I do not think either of them will get the benefit of a tow. Let's

see what this lap is like for Max Verstappen? Is it an improvement?

No, it's not. It keeps him in eighth place. The car we saw in the

distance was Lewis Hamilton. Bottas going on the short stream between

three and four. Hamilton just coming out on Turn 3. Interesting to see if

he can get a clean lap. Perez has Rosberg a bed of him, probably too

far ahead to help them. It is amazing how far back as slipstream

can sometimes help. Hamilton three temps down on Rosberg in the first

sector. Riding on board with Lewis Hamilton through the middle section.

This could be all part of the strategy, a warm up time lap, trying

to get an even spread of temperature across these tyres and a clean track

to deliver. Rosberg as well a couple of tenths down on his bus. Hamilton

trying to get good track position, he has space behind Massa.

Hulkenberg has gone ninth fastest. What about Perez? Still quite a lot

of the lap to complete. Not a good first sector. Again, this could well

be part of the strategy. Get a warm up lap before then delivering

everything, the massive maximum deployment from the battery pack.

Ricciardo trying to presumably make it round to get one more lap in

before the chequered flag comes out. He will, I think, time it dust about

right if he wants to do another lap. We are watching Hulkenberg here.

Hamilton not quick in that first sector. Running out of time. This

will be his last timed lap. He did hit 200 mph towards turn four. That

is quite impressive, the first man to do that. But not as quick as he

need in the first sector. Not quite achieving the sector times they did

in the first part of the practice session will stop Rosberg looking

comfortable. Hamilton has matched him in the middle sector. That is

his best personal sector. The chequered flag is out. Perez might

be able to improve on that. Done almost an identical sector to his

team-mate fostered Kvyat is still on a lap. Hamilton and Rosberg boat on

laps at moment. Neither seem to be improving significantly. Lewis is a

little better than his personal best in the previous lap. It looks as

though it is Rosberg's pole. Kvyat crosses the line and no further

improvement. Both fourth and fifth. Rosberg has taken pole position here

in Mexico. I don't think... He has crossed the line. Rosberg on pole

position. Perez has qualified ninth, and will get a cheer for that. It is

Rosberg again who has beaten Lewis Hamilton in qualifying, four in a

row. The gap to Lewis Hamilton was two

tenths of a second, was there a mistake here? This is to the infield

section, just the wrong side of the cup, no visible lock-up, is it the

rear wing? That activated as it went over. It may just have been a

reflection on the underside of the wing but a mistake was made and pole

position gifted to Nico Rosberg. An excellent performance by Rosberg

again. Pole position, good effort, well done. Yes, yes. Thank you very

much. Mercedes have never been to the Mexican Grand Prix before

because it was not on the calendar when they last raced in the 1950s

and it was off the calendar until now, first pole position for

Mercedes in Mexico, a massive market for them, they have their own

factory out here. 20th career pole position for Nico Rosberg. And he

becomes the first ever German driver to take pole position in Mexico. We

talked about how successful it has been for British drivers but it is

German driver Nico Rosberg who has claimed top spot here. Sebastian

Vettel has done a solid job to claim third on the grid and I think they

have good race pace. I tried everything. I had to take all the

risks but it did not work. I was trying harder but eventually it was

sliding a bit more. A good effort nonetheless for Sebastian Vettel. It

is Nico Rosberg who has beaten Lewis Hamilton, three-time world champion

in a straight fight for pole position here in Mexico. Rosberg

takes pole position in Mexico with Hamilton second and Vettel third.

We are not allowing for any penalties that might be added until

afterwards. Kimi Raikkonen with a give box

penalty and Alonso with an engine penalty so in the end, Nasa will

move up. The McLarens will have plenty of work to do from the back

of the grid. Nico Rosberg, pole position, congratulations, four in a

row, have you felt comfortable around here this weekend? It has

been a good weekend. It is always a challenge coming to a new track

because you do not know what to expect, you need to adapt or what is

coming, the track changed completely from the first to qualify, we got

eight or nine seconds quicker, but keeping everything else the same,

the track changes so much and you try to catch up and make sure your

car is suited to the conditions, I am happy with how it went in the

end. My engineering team did a great job and the setup was good. I am

pleased with that. You look very calm right now with a job well done

on Saturday. You do as well. I do not have the same pressure, the way

you have been talking to the tin, it seems you hit this track with a

point to prove, a short time since the last Grand Prix, watching your

pole position lap and to me it looked into perfect, do you think

you left anything behind? Thank you, that is a great condiment, it was

good, I am happy with that, my last lap was pretty good but I could not

improve on this one. It worked out really well. Tell us about the

challenge it, Turn 1, huge amount of speed into the braking zone and then

tight and twisting. It is tough to get right because of all the Cubs,

half a metre off and you lose a lot of time in the sequence, that makes

it quite challenging. Coming in to turn four, the sequence starting at

seven, it looked way you improved on the lap compared to Lewis, he seemed

wide and you seemed to manage it. It is difficult because the asphalt is

so smooth and the rear is snappy, it is unpredictable. It is quite

challenging. But I finally got a good setup their and it was pretty

much spot on so I was happy with that. You are almost doing the salsa

around the race track. Not much of a dancer? But you are a good driver,

well done if. Can I ask you about Turn 1. As a team, have you had a

conversation about going into Turn 1 after Austin? It has been talked

about in the past and we are not really thinking about that any more.

I am in full attack mode as always and trying to win the race and it

will be a great battle tomorrow that I am looking forward to and I think

it may be a battle between the top five because I am expecting Vettel

and the Red Bull drivers to be quick as well. We did not get perfect

preparation on Friday so there are some unexpected things that might

happen, tyre degradation could be interesting, let us see.

Congratulations today and we look forward to the race as well. Let us

hear from his team-mate. I am sure you are hoping for pole position but

we have seen what you can do from second in the last three races? It

was great, I enjoyed driving today. It is a new track so it is more fun

to drive and quite a relaxing qualifying generally, no real

stress. Second, some races, pole position makes a difference but this

one, going into qualifying, you do not mind being second. It is a long

way down to Turn 1 so I plan on getting a good start tomorrow. How

much of this race is an unknown quality because the track seems to

be changing on every lap? It is evolving and a great crowd out there

cheering us on which is great to see. The track is improving bit by

bit and I do not know if it will rain tonight but it was a cooler

chat, it will be a real challenge, we don't know what kind of strategy

it will be or how long the tyres will last, we will see tomorrow. I

think we were hoping for a close qualifying with the Red Bull and

Williams but tomorrow could be a very close race. There are five or

eight cars in the back with a similar pace which makes it tough

because you do not have the luxury of empty space behind you, a lot of

people pushing up so it should be exciting tomorrow. We saw you having

a good look at the cars and crouching down, were you looking at

the tyres? I was, I have to look down otherwise it is different to

what I usually see. I got my answer is, we have seen the cars sliding a

lot yesterday and some people have struggled with that. I think it will

be the tomorrow, who is sliding the least will be in a good position for

pace and tyres so let us see what happens, it should be an interesting

race. David, he clearly thinks this will be a race and a half tomorrow

and so does Nico, who will be in the mix? Track position is so important,

incredibly dusty, I think strategy will be the winner here rather than

any big passes on the track. A Mexican stand-off into Turn 1? Yes,

it is a long way down to the first corner, getting off the line will be

crucial, it should help Nico Rosberg on the clean part of the track, cold

brakes and 220 mph from a standing start? Sergio Perez, the man of the

moment here, every time you go out on track, we know because we can

hear the crowd, do you get the sense of that? Won I know how supportive

my country is. I am so proud and privileged to have experienced this.

Very few drivers have experienced this kind of support so I am very

happy and I want to do well for them. We can feel your passion and

enjoyment of that support, it makes it difficult to be objective on the

track, where would this rate among the top tracks in the world? I would

put this one among the top ones, especially the atmosphere. We have

not seen this atmosphere anywhere else so it is a very popular place

already for Formula 1 and the passion is growing and getting

better and better. Very happy for that. Conditions out there are

improving every lap you go out, what was it like? They have improved

massively, every lap out there was important, to be on the track at the

right time, we changed our strategy and tried to go for an extra lap

which I think was not the ideal strategy but still, a good result

for us and we have a very long race ahead of us. What can you do from

ninth? We can aim for higher than that. It will be a tough race with

the brakes and the engines but there is every chance that anything could

happen, we have a very long run to Turn 1, if we get a good start, we

can get a couple of positions and from there, anything can happen.

What we do know is that it will be allowed race with the crowd. It

will. Thank you. Let us check over the grid for tomorrow. Nico Rosberg

will start from pole position with Lewis Hamilton alongside him again.

Kimi Raikkonen is 18th after his five place grid penalty. Nico

Rosberg in pole position, giving himself the best chance for

tomorrow. He has been fantastic, a runner-up positions but he needs to

convert that. Much has been made of the relationship between the two

drivers but this is what Niki Lauda has said. Talk us through the

performance of Nico Rosberg. After last weekend, how significant is

that? After last weekend, he was deeply depressed because to make a

mistake and lose the race and make the other guy world champion is the

worst for a racing driver. He was miserable the whole weekend between

the two, it kept going on, I said it makes no sense. And I wish for

Nico, if he gets pole position here to get all of the points and thank

God he did. Their relationship, so much is made of it, is it any

different this weekend, are they friends again? First of all, they

have never been friends, they are different characters, they can't be

friends. One is home with a family and the other is flying around the

world. It is all of these kinds of things. Nevertheless, for me it is

important that Nico comes back in this last race, let us wait and see

the race because he has had opposition a couple of times and

Lewis has won the race, tomorrow will be a hard race, Vettel could be

good tomorrow so we have to be careful but it will be an

interesting race. The wise words of Niki Lauda. Straight talking, never

afraid to say what he means and as a driver, it is probably good to have

that. It is a good position to have someone like Niki Lauda who has been

there and done that, they know those words have to be respected. This

ongoing conversation about them being friends and the length of time

they have known each other, does it really matter? It is what is on the

track that matters? Piller wrote the only reason we talk about it is

because they were friends when they were younger but when you get older,

you drift apart and specially when you are competing, if it is a

champing chip involved, that will make it strange. We will have all of

the best bits for you tomorrow night on BBC One, but, five pole positions

will Nico Rosberg, proving that today he was Speedy Gonzalez, the

fastest driver in all Mexico, thanks for watching.

Rosberg has taken pole position here in Mexico. Good man.