Sebastian Vettel to start from third but Kimi Raikkonen only sixth after more qualifying woe for the struggling Finn
Tuesday 21 April 2015 15:11, UK
Ferrari are confident they have the race pace to give Mercedes a tough battle in the Chinese GP despite being soundly beaten by the Silver Arrows in qualifying.
Although Sebastian Vettel, victor two weeks ago in Malaysia, will line up a respectable third for the race, the German was beaten to pole position by almost a second by Lewis Hamilton with Nico Rosberg also eight-tenths of a second quicker than his compatriot.
“I am stunned by the gap, it has gone back to Mercedes looking absolutely dominant again,” concluded Sky F1 pundit Damon Hill.
But a weekend is a long time in F1 and even if the SF15-T cannot match the searing single-lap pace of the W06, Ferrari have already proved this season that their car has more stamina than its rival – at least in terms of preserving the precious rubber of its Pirelli tyres.
“This is not the same as Malaysia, but the gap that they have today in qualifying will not be the same as the performance in the race tomorrow,” Scuderia technical chief James Allison assured Sky Sports F1.
“We tend to use more of what our car can give in the race than they do and so it should be a bit closer tomorrow.”
A light-footed car has become the hallmark of Allison-inspired designs with the highly-rated Englishman also the brains behind the Lotus which was a regular podium-scorer in 2013. But in contrast to Malaysia, where Vettel beat the three-stopping Hamilton after only pitting his Ferrari twice, any scope for tactical flexibility is likely to be restricted in this weekend’s race.
"A one-stop would be fairly foolish here,” acknowledged Allison.
Nor is tyre preservation expected to be as critical to the outcome of this wekeend's race as it was in the blistering heat of Sepang.
“The strategy is a bit more straightforward for everyone as this year China doesn’t seem to stress the tyres as much, acknowledged Vettel. “We have managed to save a set of soft tyres so maybe that will help us tomorrow.
"It depends on the strategy and if it helps. If you stay out longer it means you stay out on a used set of tyres and usually you don’t go quicker than someone on a new set.”
Any frustration felt by Vettel paled alongside that of his Ferrari team-mate Kimi Raikkonen, however, as the Finn endured his third successive dismal qualifying hour. Unable to find the sweetspot of his car, the former world champion was relegated to just sixth behind the two Williamses.
“We are happy with Seb’s position, a bit less so with Kimi’s. We had hoped for better,” admitted Allison pointedly.
Raikkonen admitted to a mistake at Turn Three on his final lap and that he now needed to avoid getting into a rut where qualifying was concerned after problems at all three races so far.
"I'm disappointed [with] myself more than anything else to end up this way again," he said. "It's not a disaster, but it seems to have become a habit. I'd rather get rid of it."
