F1 2017 Brazilian GP: pole for Valtteri Bottas

The 2017 F1 World Championship is already decided in favour of Lewis Hamilton, but it seems that in the last two grands prix remaining we will have a battle for second place in the standings between Valtteri Bottas and Sebastian Vettel. Today, in qualifying for the Brazilian GP, both the Finn and the German have been the main protagonists, with the exception, of course, of Lewis Hamilton.

The British driver will start from the back of the grid after barely completing a few corners during Q1. Hamilton went off the track, crashing his Mercedes into the wall, which prevented him from getting back onto the track and setting a time. Seeing the champion already secured start from last place will be another of the curiosities this 2017 season leaves us with.

Thus, without Hamilton in the way, Sebastian Vettel was looking forward to taking pole as he did in Mexico, but Bottas was going to snatch the top spot from him by just three hundredths. Fifteen points separate the German driver from the Finn Ferrari in the standings, and Bottas hopes to claim second place in the championship and secure another one-two finish for the team.

Spanish performance in Brazil so far can be considered a good result. Both Fernando Alonso and Carlos Sainz reached Q3, with the former setting the seventh-fastest time and the latter the ninth-fastest. Add to that the fact that they will start one place ahead, as Ricciardo, who qualified fifth, has a grid penalty. The two Toro Rosso drivers, Brendon Hartley and Pierre Gasly, also have penalties.

The full classification, excluding penalties, from this qualifying session at the 2017 F1 Brazilian GP is as follows: