With rain affecting the final practice session there was a large degree of uncertainty as to the pace of the Williams Martini cars. Both Valtteri Bottas and Felipe Massa had only completed a few laps in the final preparations and in the minutes counting down to the start of the first period the track still looked quite wet with clouds over the circuit. Both Williams drivers would go and take a look at the track as they tried to assess the conditions. The drivers had been warned about running wide at Turns 9 and 18, Copse and Club, as they will have their times deleted. It was looking like the intermediate tyre would be the one to use as the eighteen minute period commenced. Both Gutierrez and Chilton would get penalties with it being a ten place penalty for Gutierrez and a five place penalty for Chilton.

Sutil would be first out joined by Gutierrez, both Lotus cars, Kvyat, Perez, and both Caterham's. Both Marussia cars would also come out joined by the Red Bull and Mercedes cars. Hamilton would say that the track was very dry in places. The Williams cars had yet to come out probably looking to see how the track conditions and times turn out. The times would start to come quickly with Gutierrez fastest from Bianchi and Perez. The quickest time was a 1m:46.701 as Hulkenberg moved into third. Button was now sixth as Ricciardo and Vettel went first and second. Ricciardo's time was a 1m:44.710 but Hamilton would go quicker with a 1m:43.676. Rosberg was now third followed by Vettel and Alonso. Felipe would be the first out for Williams.

Felipe was on the intermediate tyre as Hamilton and Ricciardo pitted. Valtteri had also come out also on the intermediate tyre with neither Williams yet to set a time. Raikkonen was down in twelfth with Button one place behind. The second McLaren of Magnussen was in seventh while for Williams Felipe would go fifth fastest with a 1m:45.695. Valtteri would complete his lap setting a 1m:45.318 to take fifth with Felipe now sixth with eight minutes remaining. Chilton and Kobayashi had come out on the medium tyre feeling that the conditions would allow them to try these dry tyres. Felipe would pit as other drivers came out on the dry tyres including Sutil and Button. Hamilton was back out on the medium tyre joined by Rosberg with four minutes remaining.

The track was now very busy with everyone on the medium tyre. Gutierrez would go fastest with a 1m:39.791 but others would quickly beat this time with Button going fastest with a 1m:39.791. Bianchi was now second followed by Magnussen and Sutil. But Button's time was deleted as he exceeded the track limits at the final turn. Kvyat was now fastest but would be beaten by Rosberg with a 1mL40.380. Hamilton was now third followed by Bianchi and Hulkenberg. At this time Valtteri and Felipe were seventeenth and eighteenth as the period came to an end. Both Williams cars would pit ending their period and both were out in the first period of qualifying. Both Ferrari's were also out with Alonso and Raikkonen nineteenth and twentieth.

Valtteri would say unbelievable when he was told of the fact that both Williams cars had not made the cut. The top ten would be Rosberg followed by Kvyat, Hamilton, Bianchi, Hulkenberg, Chilton, Perez, Magnussen, Sutil, and Vergne. Joining the Williams and Ferrari cars in not making the cut were the two Caterham cars. After the success in Austria Britain could not be any more different. It all came down to the rain falling while both Williams drivers were on dry tyres. Not a lot the team could do about that.

With the start of the second period all the drivers would quickly come out with everyone on new intermediate tyres. Sutil was stuck in the gravel at the end of the first period and as such would not be running in this period. Ricciardo was fastest with a 1m:47.980 but Vergne and Maldonado went faster with Vergne setting a 1m:47.173. Magnussen went second as Rosberg went fastest with a 1m:45.292 to be leading by 1.8 seconds. Hamilton would complete his lap setting a 1m:44.639 to be quickest by six tenths. Vettel would move ahead of Hamilton with a 1m:44.085. Hamilton was now second followed by Rosberg, Vergne, and Magnussen. But Vettel's time would be deleted having exceeded the track limits at Turn nine.

Ricciardo would move up to be second with a time of 1m:44.826. Button was now fourth, 1m:46.583, followed by Kvyat and Vergne. Hamilton was back out on the medium tyre joined by Ricciardo and Rosberg. Everyone was now on the medium tyre as Rosberg went fastest with a 1m:42.730. But Gutierrez were go fastest only to be beaten by Bianchi. But the times would continue to come down as Vettel went fastest with a 1m:38.332 only to be beaten by Vergne with a 1m:38.310. Rosberg would beat everyone with a 1m:35.179. Ricciardo was now second as Hamilton went fastest with a 1m:35.000. Bianchi was seventh and Chilton ninth. Kvyat would go fourth fastest but Button would move into this spot with a 1m:36.579.

Gutierrez would go off in the second sector as the period came to a close. With the end of the period the top ten would be Hamilton from Rosberg, Vettel, Button, Kvyat, Hulkenberg, Perez, Magnussen, Vergne and Ricciardo tenth. Those not making the cut would be Grosjean, Bianchi, Chilton, Gutierrez, Maldonado, and Sutil. With the grid penalties Gutierrez will drop to last and Chilton will drop from thirteenth to fifteenth. This would see Valtteri and Felipe start the race from fifteenth and sixteenth.

The final period would commence with Vergne out first followed by Kvyat. Everyone was out on the medium tyre as both Mercedes cars came out. The only driver yet to come out was Vettel but he would do so as it was reported that there was rain falling at Stowe. Kvyat would set a 1m:40.707 with Vergne second. But Perez would go fastest with a 1m:40.457 but Hamilton would be able to set a quicker time with a 1m:39.232. Rosberg was now second with a time of 1m:39.426. Perez was now third followed by Ricciardo, Kvyat, Vergne, Button, Hulkenberg, Magnussen, as Vettel pitted without setting a time.

Drivers would pit waiting to see if the conditions improved. There was still five minutes remaining the conditions did not look like they were going to improve. Qualifying had been totally dominated by the changeable weather. "This next set of tyres has to go back anyway, so we may as well run," would be Force India's advice to Hulkenberg. Drivers would start to come back out with two minutes remaining. Both Torro Rosso cars would remain in their pits joined by Ricciardo. Both Mercedes cars were able to beta the end of the period but Perez would not do so. Vettel would go fastest with a 1m:37.386 with Button second. But Rosberg would be able to find time setting a 1m:35.766 to go quickest. Hulkenberg would finish in followed followed by Magnussen. Hamilton would end up in sixth followed by Perez, Ricciardo, Kvyat, and Vergne in tenth.

So the Williams Martini team will see their drivers start from the rear of the grid after a qualifying that saw them suffer from a strategy that saw them on the track at the wrong time. But they were not the only ones with Ferrari joining them at the back of the grid.