Nico Rosberg believes that qualifying 4th for the Hungarian Grand Prix is a good result considering that Mercedes have been focusing on their race pace at the Hungaroring.
With temperatures expected to exceed 100ºF tomorrow in Hungary, Mercedes are expected to suffer from the same issues that saw Rosberg and Hamilton squander good qualifying results in Bahrain and Spain. However, Rosberg believes that the heat will in fact play into Mercedes’ hands on race day.
“Our speed was a bit of a surprise today as the car set-up work was focused on good race pace this weekend,” Rosberg said in a statement from Mercedes. “But it worked quite well in the hot temperatures. It’s great for the team to be starting from fourth and pole position. I hope we can have a good start even though I’m on the dirtier side of the grid.”
Rosberg also explained how a problem with the car prevented him from challenging for the front row on Saturday.
“Qualifying did not go perfectly for me at the end, it didn’t help that my brake balance adjuster got stuck, so I couldn’t change it around the lap. That cost me a little, but the pole wasn’t possible today. Now we look forward to tomorrow and I’m confident that we look better in the hot conditions than in the previous race.”