Hamilton Rockets to Pole in Australia

Lewis Hamilton dominated qualifying down-under, finishing 0.6s faster than team mate Nico Rosberg and 1.4 from nearest non-Mercedes challenger, Felipe Massa in an impressive 3rd place.

Vettel pipped Raikkonen in the Ferrari battle in 4th and 5th. Bottas had a messy Q3 but still managed 6th on the grid.

Nasr impressed with 11th and Verstappen out-qualified the Red Bull of Daniil Kvyat. The Force India drivers separated by a thousandth of a second.

Ricciardo claimed 7th at his home event, just ahead of Sainz who lines up in an impressive 8th. The Lotus duo complete the top 10.

Max Verstappen impressed in Q1, going faster than both Ferrari’s at one point, but Q2 wasn’t as kind to the 17-year old. He lines up in 12th. Daniil Kvyat had some issues in Q1 and recovered to progress to Q2 where he slotted into 13th.

McLaren Honda start their first race of the new era from 17th and 18th. Jenson Button remains confident the MP4-30 will eventually challenge Mercedes at the front later in the season. Marus Ericsson followed them out in Q1.

Manor F1 Team did not participate in qualifying. It is likely the Stewards will not grant them permission to race.

The grid for the 2015 Australian Grand Prix will line up as follows

Image courtesy of Mercedes AMG Petronas