Rosberg takes pole ahead of Hamilton

MONTREAL: Nico Rosberg took pole position for Sunday’s Canadian Grand Prix with a commanding demonstration of speed as he outpaced his Mercedes teammate Lewis Hamilton in a thrilling conclusion to Saturday’s qualifying session.
Two weeks after his controversial pole at the Monaco Grand Prix, Rosberg drove with flawless control to edge beyond his teammate and nearest title rival by just 0.079 seconds.
The 28-year-old German secured his second successive pole, his third this year and the seventh of his career with a best lap time of one minute and 14.874 seconds to shatter the impression that the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve would see Hamilton regain supremacy over this teammate.
It was the fourth one-two on the grid for Mercedes this year. It was Rosberg’s first pole in Montreal and came on a circuit where Hamilton had previously won three.
Germany’s defending four-time world champion Sebastian Vettel bounced back from an inconsistent weekend to grab third place in his Red Bull car ahead of Finn Valtteri Bottas and his Williams teammate Felipe Massa of Brazil.
Massa’s lap, on super-soft tires in the closing minutes, not only split the two dominant Mercedes cars, but also showed that his team were extracting more performance from that rubber compound than the championship leading team.
Both Hamilton and Rosberg struggled with the ‘super-softs’ and were unable to clock improved lap times on the red-walled tires in the final minutes. They were the only two men in the top 12 whose best lap was not set on the so-called option tires.
Ten-year extension
The Canadian Grand Prix will remain on the calendar for the next 10 years, Montreal authorities said on Saturday after announcing an agreement in principal with Formula One supremo Bernie Ecclestone.
The new deal envisages nearly $27.44 million being spent on a major revamp of the track and paddock infrastructure at the ageing Circuit Gilles Villeneuve, considered one of the championship’s most out-dated.
Montreal mayor Denis Coderre told reporters ahead of qualifying at the island track that the agreement, yet to be signed off by municipal, federal and provincial authorities, was a formality.
“If we had the authority to announce the agreement it is because we have the full support of our people,” he said. “Regarding Mr. Ecclestone and ourselves, everything is OK.
“Because it is taxpayers’ money we have to go through the political process but for us it is a formality.” Three levels of government will invest $187 million over the next 10 years to keep the race in Montreal with the Government of Canada and Tourism Montreal each throwing in $62.4 million, Quebec $49.9 million and Montreal $12.4 million.
The City of Montreal will also pay for the renovations.
The Canadian Grand Prix has been held in Montreal since 1978 and become one of the most popular events on the F1 calendar for fans, drivers and teams.
It is also one of the most successful sporting events in Canada, pouring an estimated $70 million annually into the local economy.
“You can feel the passion all over the place. It is not just a business deal. This is the place of Gilles Villeneuve, Jacques Villeneuve. It is part of our DNA and everybody feels that,” said Coderre.
“We’re not talking about expense, we are talking about investment. We are seeing that it is a window to the world.” Sunday’s race is the last on the current contract and the new deal ends months of tense negotiations and speculation.
“I am delighted with the agreement reached between the commercial rights holder, Formula One World Championship Limited and the governments of Canada and Quebec and the City of Montreal and Tourism Montreal,” said promoter