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F1 2016: Spanish GP Qualifying Report – Hamilton On Top

Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton has secured pole position for Sunday’s Spanish grand prix.

The one hour qualifying session got underway under bright Spanish skies and in front of an excited crowd. The biggest casualty in the first part of qualifying was Williams driver Felipe Massa who will start 18th on the grid.

It was good news for McLaren as Fernando Alonso was able to advance to the top ten shoot-out for the first time since Honda has returned to the sport.

The first minutes of the top ten shoot-out belonged to newly promoted Red Bull driver Max Verstappen as he ended the first round of laps in second position overall. However, it was never his to maintain as the two Mercedes duked it out for pole position. Lewis Hamilton got the better of teammate Nico Rosberg with a quali lap of 1:22:000, 0.280s faster than the German.

Daniel Ricciardo, in the other Red Bull, left himself one shot at a final quail run and delivered. The Aussie will line up third with his teenaged teammate, Verstappen, in fourth.

Despite showing well in the morning’s third practice session Ferrari failed to deliver. Kimi Raikkonen managed the fifth quickest time ahead of teammate Sebastian Vettel in 6th. Team principal Maurizio Arrivabene was quoted as saying, about the pace, “we have to check.”

Williams’ Valtteri Bottas (7th), Toro Rosso’s Carlos Sainz (8th), Force India’s Sergio Perez (9th), and McLaren’s Fernando Alonso (10th) round out the top ten.

About Natalie Le Clue

Natalie Le Clue is an F1 aficionado of the most dedicated vein. And, true to form for any F1-enamoured junkie, she readily admits to crying the first time she saw a F1 car, calling it an ‘overwhelming moment’. Natalie has won the 2010 gSport Woman In Media award, the 2015 Woman In Media Print award, and has been named as one of the Top 100 Most Influential People in South African Sport by the Department of Sport and Recreation. Natalie is currently serving as SAfm's F1 correspondent. Follow Natalie on Twitter @nlc27

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