Formula 1

Valtteri Bottas takes pole position in Bahrain

Published Apr. 15, 2017 12:13 p.m. ET

Samuel Reiman

Valtteri Bottas has taken pole position for Sunday’s Bahrain GP at the Bahrain International Circuit in Sakhir, Bahrain.

It is his first career pole position in Formula One. The Finnish driver will start ahead of his Mercedes teammate Lewis Hamilton after the Brit failed to improve on his time in the closing stages of Q3. Sebastian Vettel and Daniel Ricciardo will start from the second row ahead of their respective Ferrari and Red Bull teammates Kimi Raikkonen and Max Verstappen.

Nico Hulkenberg, Felipe Massa, Romain Grosjean and Jolyon Palmer round out the top 10.

While both Renaults made it into Q2, some teams and drivers weren’t as lucky with Daniil Kvyat, Lance Stroll, Pascal Wehrlein, Esteban Ocon and Fernando Alonso all failing to advance. For Wehrlein it was a solid qualifying performance having missed the opening two rounds of the 2017 season, while Alonso was unable to turn a lap in Q2 due to a power unit issue.

A couple of names knocked out in Q1 were expected to start higher up in the field. Carlos Sainz found himself on a flying lap in the closing moments of the session that should’ve moved him up and into Q2. However, he suffered a loss of power at the end of his lap which brought his car to a halt on course. Yellow flags were waved and so Sergio Perez and Kevin Magnussen were unable to improve on their laps. Sainz, Stoffel Vandoorne, Perez, Marcus Ericsson and Magnussen were all eliminated in Q1.

The Bahrain GP gets underway at 11 a.m. ET Sunday.

Unofficial qualifying results:

1. Valtteri Bottas - Mercedes
2. Lewis Hamilton - Mercedes
3. Sebastian Vettel - Ferrari
4. Daniel Ricciardo - Red Bull
5. Kimi Raikkonen - Ferrari
6. Max Verstappen - Red Bull
7. Nico Hulkenberg - Renault
8. Felipe Massa - Williams
9. Romain Grosjean - Haas
10. Jolyon Palmer - Renault
11. Daniil Kvyat - Toro Rosso
12. Lance Stroll - Williams
13. Pascal Wehrlein - Sauber
14. Esteban Ocon - Force India
15. Fernando Alonso - McLaren
16. Carlos Sainz - Toro Rosso
17. Stoffel Vandoorne - McLaren
18. Sergio Perez - Force India
19. Marcus Ericsson - Sauber
20. Kevin Magnussen - Haas

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