[jfxavier]

Originally Posted by GTO

And also match Senna on the number of race starts! If he manages it, this will be Lewis' 8th straight pole. Wow. This is Hamilton's season and he's not putting a wheel wrong. The Singapore track is waiting for him.

Lets hope there's more overtaking, thanks to the revised turn 11 - 13 stretch.

Originally Posted by ecenandu

But that doesn't account for 1.4 second deficit. Mercs have been on the back foot after Pirelli tyre pressure saga. Ferrari wasn't that far behind Merc in the Italian GP qualification. If not for the Vettel's mistake in the final lap there, Ferrari would have been more closer.

As you said, I also believe Mercs will be back in business at Suzuka.

Originally Posted by StarrySky

RedBull and Ferrari (Alonso) were not far off the Mercs in Singapore last year as well. Probably they had enough performance in hand last year to still be on pole, but not so this year. I guess it's just that the Mercs are not suited this track at all for some reason. I will be surprised if normal service isn't resumed at Suzuka.

Originally Posted by Hatari

That was some lap by Seb. Strategy will be key tom.
Shame about McLaren not being allowed their fastest laps due to the Sainz crash.

Very curious to know what the devil is wrong with Mercedes.

Looks like Ferrari and Vettel has other plans.
The records will stand for the time being.
First time a non-mercedes powered car on pole since the new engine formula started.



Different tyre pressures and cambers seem to have shaken things up, but the almost certain appearance of the Safety Car plus the new Start procedures might just shake things up again tomorrow.

Post Quali interviews seem to indicate Mercedes can’t get the tyres into their working range.

Last year the front tyre limits were set by Pirelli at 16 Psi on the front. This has been raised by 2 Psi to 18 and the rear tyres to 17 Psi.

The level of wheel camber allowed has also been reduced by Pirelli from 2014. Last year 4.5 degrees were used on the front tyres and 3 degrees on the rear. This year those numbers will be respectively 3.75 and 2.5 degrees.

[mayankk]

I had a feeling this track was going to throw up something like this ,looking at fp.
However, I do believe that make-or-break lap on q3,not a good choice by Lewis. He could have done better than 5th if he'd done a couple more. Anyway, makes for some excitement tomorrow. Fingers crossed for hammer time!

[Fullrevs]

That was a brilliant lap by Vettel. More than 3 years since Ferrari has taken pole position. This maybe a one time situation but I'll take it.

[Jeeper1941]

So awesome to see a Ferrari on pole and P3. Hopefully that'll turn into some good points today. That was a brilliant lap by Vettel.
Interesting statistic: Vettel was the last driver to get a pole without a Mercedes engine, and he's again the first driver to get a pole without a Mercedes engine.
Forza Ferrari! (Fingers and toes crossed )

[deetjohn]

I think its the combination of the tight twisty circuit, heat, and the latest regulations on tyre pressure which is favorable for Ferrari this weekend.

I have been missing the race weekends for the last few months due to travel. I am home this weekend and thought of skipping the Singapore GP, as its normally a big bore. But after the farce which was the London derby yesterday, I could really do with two Ferraris on the podium come race day. Really need something to bounce back.

And there is a great chance for a engaging race as there are some fast cars at the back. Let's see how the tyres fare under race distance for Mercedes today.

[Nitrous Power]

Did it just happen? There was a man strolling around on circuit that forced 2nd Safety car deployment. And people made fun of stray dog on circuit during Indian Grand Prix few years ago.

[jraj]

All the hoopla over Lewis equaling Senna's record and Seb silently goes one over

What a drive from him. Absolutely loved the way he controlled the pace after pit stops and the way he pulled in some terrific lap times

Forza Ferrari

[deetjohn]

Nice! A 1 - 3 after long. I really like the new Ferrari boss Maurizio. He is silently taking the team to where it belongs. Love the way he was putting the emphasis on the team after the win.

And let's see how the new updates fare in the power track that's Suzuka.

[Sudeep_Kimster]

Finally a thoroughly deserved Double Podium with a race win since many days.

The new resurgence in the Prancing Horse team has to be with the New Boss, their hunger for wins and an equally upgraded engine package with technical side led by James Allison.

And the combination of German and Italian anthems heard after many many years was a reminder of Schumacher days. Forza Ferrari.

[Hatari]

Where's that depressed icon? McLaren missed a chunk of points today. Real shame.

Hope someone interrogates that idiot who was walking on the track like the Mumbai cops do. Deserves to be eating his food only through a straw next few days. Ruined a race that was building up quite nicely. Cant believe the top 3 stayed the same right throughout.

[mayankk]

Either this track needs to be reworked, or the drivers just don't respect it enough. They race on the narrower Monaco track, we don't see contact so blatantly.
Anyway, an utterly disappointing race as far as the team goes, but boy were there things happening!
Normal service shall resume at Japan.

[Fullrevs]

I totally enjoyed watching Ferrari getting a 1st and 3rd place finish. Happy for Daniel Ricciardo as well. Watching Seb control the pace after the first pitstops was great to watch although a bit worrying as I couldn't understand if he had a car problem or was just fooling around.. A lot of it had to do with the conditions of the circuit as he was quite confident Ricciardo couldn't come back. It also makes me feel that Red Bull weren't trying to be overly aggressive and had resigned to 2nd place after the first 2-3 laps.

I think it was warped to give Hulkenberg a penalty for Suzuka. It was quite clearly a racing incident. Coming in from that angle towards turn-3 I wonder how the stewards expected him to yield for Massa.

Very sad to see the Mclarens retire. That small fight Alonso had with the Lotus was a delight to watch. The two time champ still has the grit, wish he was driving the other Mercedes alongside Hamilton.

Hopefully Ferrari can continue fighting the Mercedes next weekend. Looks unlikely but if this is a true return to form for the Scuderia, then there's still some fight left for the remaining 6 races.

[sgiitk]

A few observations:

1. Ferrari ponies seem to be suddenly becoming thoroughbreds. The horse was definitely dancing.

2. No Mercedes powered vehicle represented on the podium. Ferrari - Renault - Ferrari

3. Vettel showed his mettle!!

4. I really enjoyed the race (and qualifying esp Vettel's fantastic lap).

5. I was expecting more clashes/accidents than we saw.

A great race experience.

[Jeeper1941]

Oh yes! How sweet it is! What a race, great to see two red cars on the podium! Shame Hamilton retired, would have been really interesting to see if their strategy would work.

And what were those team orders at Toro Rosso all about, did Verstappen really gain a position at the expense of his teammate?

Finally, I really wonder what is going through Alonso's head right now. He left Ferrari because he was sick of them not being competitive, and joined a team which is being beaten by the likes of Lotus and Toro Rosso. They seem to be having some terrible times. I was really hoping either JB or Alonso would get a point or two, but it wasn't meant to be.

[gtonsing]

I dont think the hulkenberg penalty was justified. There was only a small chance he could have seen the car.
That man walking!! They walk amongst us!
Glad to see the prancing horses in the podium. Was hoping the mercs will give them a good fight and we will have an incident packed, tightly fought race. Alas,it was not to be. Glad to see SFI in 5th. Hope they retain that position or move up as the year closes.
Away to the land of the Nippon, we go. As always, full of hope.