F1 News
What can Formula 1 do if qualifying in Russia goes down the drain?
- GPblog.com
Due to the heavy rainfall on and around the Sochi circuit the qualifying for the Russian Grand Prix is in danger of being cancelled. Part of the schedule has already been cancelled: VT3 was cancelled, but Formula 2 and Formula 3 both had to cancel a race as well.
For Formula 1 qualifying though, things seem to be looking pretty good for the time being. Half an hour before the light goes green, it has stopped raining and the sun is even coming out. But what are the options for the race committee if it starts raining again?
Postpone qualifying to the afternoon or Sunday morning
A number of different scenarios are possible. According to race director Michael Masi, qualifying is the priority so if it can't start at 15:00 local time then it will probably be postponed until the rain clears. Masi earlier indicated that the afternoon is a possibility, and possibly even Sunday morning.
Result VT2 as starting grid
Another possibility is to use the result of the second free practice as the starting grid. This is a last resort, however, and will only be used if the weather forecast for both Saturday afternoon and Sunday morning remains bad. Should this be the case, Valtteri Bottas will start from pole position with Lewis Hamilton next to him on P2. Pierre Gasly will be happy with this solution, as it would mean a third starting position for him. Lando Norris would complete the second row of the grid.