Pirelli Qualifying report - Hamilton takes pole by 0.200s in Sochi sunshine

(Pirelli Motorsport Media)

Mercedes AMG PETRONAS F1 Team driver Lewis Hamilton took pole position this afternoon for tomorrow's inaugural Russian Grand Prix in Sochi. The weather conditions were perfect for the session which saw the 2008 world champion claim pole position from team mate Nico Rosberg by 0.200s on a new set of the Pirelli P-Zero Yellow walled Soft compound tyre.

Hamilton's time of 1m 38.513s was enough to the Englishman his seventh pole position of the season while Mercedes claimed their ninth front row lock out of the season.

All of the runners in the final part of qualifying completed their fastest laps on brand new set of the Soft compound tyre and Pirelli stated that the performance gap between the two compounds was 1.2 seconds over a lap,

In terms of pit-stop strategy, the Italian firm believes that a one stop strategy is doable and that the time for a pit-stop from entering the pit-lane at 60 Kph, stationary time to exiting the pit-lane is 24 seconds. They believe that in order to get the most out of a one stop strategy the best lap to box is lap 34, starting on the Soft tyre before making the switch to Medium tyre.

For a two stop strategy to work Pirelli recommend starting the race on the Soft tyre before pitting for the Soft again on lap 20 and then completing the 53 lap by stopping for a set of the Medium tyre's on lap 50.

Speaking about today's on track action Pirelli Motorsport director Paul Hembery stated:

'As expected, the performance gap between the two compounds has come down a bit compared to yesterday while degradation is minimal. We will probably see the drivers keeping their tyres for as long as possible, with a one-stop strategy now looking a distinct possibility, also because of the fact that the pit lane speed limit has been reduced. 

The faster cars may allow themselves the luxury of a two-stopper, following more of a sprint strategy. Either way, it’s going to be an interesting race at a significant new venue, where tyre tactics are set to play a central role.'

© Ben Johnston 2014