Imola Grand Prix – Mercedes’ Valtteri Bottas has taken pole position for Sunday’s race at Imola, ahead of teammate Lewis Hamilton, but it was Pierre Gasly who stole the show in qualifying..
Click here for our complete results from Qualifying – 2020 Imola Grand Prix.
Valtteri Bottas has snatched pole position from teammate Lewis Hamilton, after responding to the impressive pace laid down by Hamilton on the first runs in Q3. Just 0.031 split the Merc pair after their first runs on the Soft tyres at the start of Q3, with Hamilton initially seizing the initiative despite a small error which saw him dip a wheel into the gravel leaving Rivazza.
On the second runs, Bottas did a 1:13.609 to pip Hamilton by 0.097 and take his fifteenth career pole position.
Max Verstappen was P3 for Red Bull Racing, and will join Mercedes by starting the race on the Medium compound. The Dutch driver had to survive a scare in Q2, after a spark plug issue sapped his car’s power and forced him back to the pits. His mechanics were able to rectify the problem in time to get him back out on track where he put in a time good enough to make into Q3. He was half a second off the Mercedes’ pace in Q3, and had to fend off the attentions of stablemate Pierre Gasly.
The French driver was one of the stars of the session, as he was consistently high in the pecking order. Finishing in P3 in Q2, Gasly finished 0.3 behind Verstappen at the end of Q3 and will line up in P4.
Daniel Ricciardo will line up in P5 for Renault, while Alex Albon will start from P6. The Red Bull driver spun on his first flying lap attempt in Q2 on Mediums, and had to return to the pits to swap to the Softs to ensure his participation in Q3.
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