As we reach the half way point in the season, is it still proving to be a two horse race or can someone upset the top dogs at Mercedes, time will tell.
The Hungarian Grand Prix has always been somewhere Lewis Hamilton has excelled, could the Brit overturn his qualifying disaster for the second week running in his hopes to close the gap on Mercedes teammate Rosberg, who leads by 14 points? The man who will certainly have something to say about that is Rosberg himself, the current championship leader who looks to have a prime opportunity to put even more space between himself and his main competition, Hamilton.
Lewis Hamilton’s hopes of qualifying in pole position for a 5th time at the Hungarian Grand Prix has literally gone up in flames after his car malfunctioned during the start of qualifying three, due to a suspected fuel leak. The unexpected glitch means that the Brit will start from the pits, a stark contrast to his teammate Nico Rosberg, who qualified in pole position, with Red Bull’s Sebastian Vettel in second and Williams’ Valtteri Bottas in third. With former champion Vettel and danger man Bottas ahead of him it could prove to be a tough ask for Hamilton to get a place on the podium, but if anyone can do it it’s Lewis, especially on one of his favourite tracks.
Another man who is no stranger to the Hungaroring is Ferrari ‘s Kimi Raikkonen, however the Finn has had a tough time of it this season, posting some disastrous results. Raikkonen however will have a lot of trouble if he is to give his many Hungarian fans any kind of hope. The Ferrari doesn’t have the power of the Mercedes, Williams or even the Red Bull, and with tight and twisting corners, it’s going to be a long afternoon for those at the back of the grid, due to a massive misjudged decision by his team, after telling both drivers not to go out for a second go around the track in their first qualifying session. The decision didn’t seem to effect his teammate Alonso though, who finished in fifth position behind the second Red Bull driver, Daniel Ricciardo.
Another man who will be hoping for a good race is Williams’ Felipe Massa, who has had three DNF’s recently, and with a qualifying position of sixth, he just be hoping for a finish and some points, as he is currently behind his teammate Bottas in the leader board.
With the weather expected to be similar, wet and tricky conditions will certainly help the struggling Jenson Button, who didn’t have the sort of race he’d have wanted last week in Germany. The McLaren driver has always proved experienced in the rain and should he have a good race, starting from 7th, a podium position isn’t completely out of the question. One thing’s for sure, his fans and team will be hoping for the best possible outcome.
The top two championship contenders couldn’t have more contrasting starts, and with former champion Sebastian Vettel looming in second it could prove to be an action packed day at the Hungaroring. Can Raikkonen and Hamilton make their way forward from the back of the grid to shake things up? One thing is for certain, Rosberg looks primed and ready to get another win and put even more space between himself and Hamilton.
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