F1 News
Date: 7/July/2012
F1 World Championship leader Fernando Alonso claimed his and Ferrari’s first pole position since 2010 during a restarted qualifying session for the British Grand Prix at Silverstone.
Extreme weather conditions in the UK have caused havoc both on and off-track this weekend.
Problems with car parking due to the torrential rain led to huge traffic delays on Friday, prompting circuit organisers to make the extraordinary request that anyone needing to use the temporary car parks on Saturday - thought to include as many as 30,000 fans - stay away in an effort to keep them functional for race day.
The F1 stars have not been immune from the severe weather either, running only a limited number of laps due to the conditions on Friday, before Saturday’s qualifying session was halted due to the amount of standing water.
Conditions fortunately improved during the unplanned interval and a switch from wets to intermediate tyres was ultimately required in the closing minutes of Q3.
Alonso, last year’s winner, went on to snatch pole from Red Bull’s Mark Webber by 0.047s on his very final lap.
“It’s nice to be on pole position after nearly two years,” said Alonso. “For Ferrari that’s a long time.
“In wet conditions you need to be in the right place in the right moment, with the circuit in the best conditions possible.
“You never know exactly the conditions of the next corner on a day like today. It can be a little bit drier than the lap before or wetter. You are gambling with the grip and when you find yourself in pole position, for sure it’s a little bit surprising.”
Pole completed a stunning turnaround for Alonso, who had spun in the wettest part of qualifying and been in danger of an early elimination.
“You have to be calm in some difficult moments. In Q2 we were at the red flag, position 15 and 16, Felipe [Massa] and me. I had a spin in Turn 13. It was a lot of aquaplaning there.
“It was impossible to run, to be honest it was a good decision,” he said of the stoppage. “And then also it was a good decision waiting until the circuit was in condition to run again”
Alonso dedicated pole to compatriot Maria de Villota, who suffered serious head injuries - including the loss of an eye - while testing for the Marussia team earlier this week.
“All of us are all racing with a little bit of sadness about the news at the beginning of the week,” said Alonso. “Anything we do this weekend hopefully will bring strength to her and her family, and we wish her a very good recovery.”
Looking ahead to Sunday, Silverstone is confident it will be able to accommodate all of the predicted 125,000 race day fans and Alonso hopes they can enjoy the show.
“The fans have been amazing all weekend with these weather conditions and they deserve a normal race tomorrow,” he said. “So even if it’s wet, no stopping the race or nothing like that, hopefully…”
Alonso will start the race with a 20-point lead over Webber. Third in the Championship Lewis Hamilton qualified as the leading British driver, in eighth place for McLaren.
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