Australian GP: Williams Martini Qualifying Review

By Williams Martini Racing
March 14 2015

 
 Williams Martini Australian GP Qualifying Review
Massa
 
Qualifying Notes
• Felipe Massa qualified third and Valtteri Bottas sixth for tomorrow’s Australian Grand Prix.
• The FW37 looked competitive in each qualifying session and Felipe put together an excellent final flying lap in Q3 to take a second row position.
• Valtteri developed a back injury during qualifying which hindered his ability to get the most out of the car and had to settle for P6. He has subsequently been taken to the Alfred Hospital for precautionary checks.
 
Massa 
 		 Felipe Massa:
"Mercedes have been ahead all weekend so we knew that on pure pace we were fighting for the best of the rest. Qualifying P3 means that we have done a very good job in getting the most out of the car; especially as the Ferrari’s looked strong and were pushing us hard. It will be a tough battle tomorrow so we need to get the start right and have a good strategy to secure a podium and really start the season on a high note."
Bottas
  		 Valtteri Bottas:
"It was great to finally start the season and to have a very tight qualifying session. The car performed well and we were fighting with Ferrari throughout. Unfortunately towards the end of Q2 I started to feel a pain in my back. Under the circumstances I’m happy with sixth place, but as Felipe proved, this is not a true indication of our pace. Given the back complaint I had during the session, the team and I felt it sensible to get me checked out at the local hospital and we await their diagnosis."
Rob Smedley
  		 Rob Smedley, Head of Vehicle Performance:
"It was a bit of a mixed qualifying for us today. On the one side Felipe was able to show the speed of the car and there was still margin left in his lap which puts us in a good position for tomorrow. Valtteri had a back complaint develop during qualifying which hindered his ability to set the sort of time he was capable of and had to settle for the third row. The race will be challenging strategically, but the car has shown very good long run pace which will stand us in good stead tomorrow."
Bottas
 

Track Albert Park Circuit, Melbourne
Lap Length 5.303kms/ 3.295 miles

Weather Warm and Dry
Air: 20-28°C Track: 27-37C

POS

DRIVER

TEAM

Q1

Q2

 Q3
1 L Hamilton Mercedes 1:28.586 1:26.894 1:26.327
2 N Rosberg Mercedes 1:28.906 1:27.097 1:26.921
3 F Massa Williams Martini Racing 1:29.246 1:27.895 1:27.718
6 V Bottas Williams Martini Racing 1:29.641 1:27.796 1:28.087
 
Massa
 

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