Conditions were warm and dry for qualifying, in ambient temperatures of 25 degrees centigrade, with most of the drivers starting on the medium tyre. The Marussias and Caterhams, as well as the Sauber of Esteban Gutierrez, were first to use the supersoft tyres, while the supersoft-equipped Lotus of Kimi Raikkonen was quickest of all at the end of the session.
All the drivers started Q2 on the supersoft tyre, with Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton setting the initial benchmark. He was topped by Vettel, who went quickest with three minutes to go after a single run on the supersoft. That time was good enough for the Red Bull driver to maintain the fastest time to the end.
With the track constantly evolving, timing was important during Q3, which was run exclusively on the P Zero Red supersoft tyres. The Red Bull drivers went out early for the first of two runs, followed closely by both Mercedes, with Vettel going quickest. The Ferraris and the Saubers tried a different tactic by opting for just one run at the end, while Lotus split their strategies, with Romain Grosjean completing two runs and Kimi Raikkonen doing just one.
The big question mark is the weather, rain showers have been predicted for Saturday night and Sunday morning. Race itself should remain dry, with temperatures expected to be cooler than weekend so far.
P. DRIVER TEAM TIME GAP
1. Sebastian Vettel Red Bull 1:37.202
2. Lewis Hamilton Mercedes 1:37.420 + 0.218
3. Mark Webber Red Bull 1:37.464 + 0.262
4. Romain Grosjean Lotus 1:37.531 + 0.329
5. Nico Rosberg Mercedes 1:37.679 + 0.477
6. Fernando Alonso Ferrari 1:38.038 + 0.836
7. Felipe Massa Ferrari 1:38.223 + 1.021
8. Nico Hulkenberg Sauber 1:38.237 + 1.035
9. Esteban Gutierrez Sauber 1:38.405 + 1.203
10. Kimi Raikkonen Lotus 1:38.822 + 1.620
Q2 fastest time: Sebastian Vettel 1:37.569 Gap
11. Sergio Perez McLaren 1:38.362 + 0.793
12. Jenson Button McLaren 1:38.365 + 0.796
13. Daniel Ricciardo Toro Rosso 1:38.417 + 0.848
14. Adrian Sutil Force India 1:38.431 + 0.862
15. Paul di Resta Force India 1:38.718 + 1.149
16. Jean-Eric Vergne Toro Rosso 1:38.781 + 1.212
Q1 fastest time: Kimi Raikkonen 1:38.341 Gap
17. Valtteri Bottas Williams 1:39.470 + 1.129
18. Pastor Maldonado Williams 1:39.987 + 1.646
19. Charles Pic Caterham 1:40.864 + 2.523
20. Giedo van der Garde Caterham 1:40.871 + 2.530
21. Jules Bianchi Marussia 1:41.169 + 2.828
22. Max Chilton Marussia 1:41.322 + 2.981
107% Time: 1:45.224
