Korean GP: Vettel nips Webber for Red Bull 1-2

Sebastian Vettel – No. 1 again

Red Bull ace Sebastian Vettel turned the fastest lap of qualifying on his very last lap and just beat his Red Bull teammate Mark Vettel for pole in the inaugural Korean GP F1 race by less than 1/10th of a second with a lap record 1m35.585s lap.

It was the 8th time this reason the Red Bull-Renault duo locked out the front row. Fernando Alonso's Ferrari was third just slightly slower with a lap of 1m35.766s. Lewis Hamilton ended up fourth fastest, and was disappointed with that having set the pace in Q3 and shown pace throughout qualifying but ended with 1m36.062s, a full 1/2 second off pole.

It was Vettel's 14th career pole and 9th this season and was an important achievement to start on the clean side of the track as he is tied for 2nd in points with Alonso, both 14 points behind Webber.

Despite lower track temperature making it difficult to get the heat in the tires, Vettel snatched the top spot with a single lap final Q3 run while Webber did a two lap run. Both were able to demote Fernando Alonso to third on the grid after it looked like his lap was fastest enough for pole. Webber would have been better off qualifying third, however, as the dirty side of the grid in Korea, because of the oils that seep out of new asphalt, will likely be extra slippery if the forecast rain materializes.

"Again it was very close," Vettel said. "On my first Q3 run I was happy with the car but lost time in the first sector. The second and third sectors have nice flowing corners but it's easy to make a mistake. I'm really happy because yesterday wasn't smooth running — we tried something and it didn't work, and there was also a puncture. I tried to save the car a little bit this morning so I was pleased that I got into a good rhythm. Turns 9-10-11 into an off-camber right-hander at T12 are difficult and you have to understand how much curb you can take before you go into the dust, so the rhythm is important."

Webber was disappointment on missing out on a sixth pole of the year by such a tiny margin again, which is attributable to the fact that he weighs more than his teammate Vettel, and hence has less opportunity to position ballast in his car in the most optimum location. "I wasn't happy on the first timed lap," he admitted, "so I was more comfortable being able to do two timed laps for the final effort. It would have been nice to get pole but I can still get a good result from here."

Fernando Alonso set the pace on the first Q3 runs in the Ferrari but was satisfied to end up third, just 0.18s behind Vettel's pole. "It was a smooth qualifying and P3 was our maximum potential today," he said. "We seemed closer to Red Bull, which is good for tomorrow and there are doubts about rain, so we need to stay calm and make sure we finish the race. Tomorrow maybe not all five championship contenders will finish and we can't afford to be one of those."

With McLaren hoping that Lewis Hamilton could challenge for pole after he was fastest in Q1, the team had to content itself with fourth for Hamilton and a disappointing seventh for Jenson Button.

"I think I got more out of the car than was in it," Hamilton said. "We are still there in the fight but I don't know where the others found half a second. I had a bit of a moment on the big bump coming into the pit lane practicing my in-lap, which was nearly a big shunt! I think we are competitive on long runs and I will give it the best I can."

"The car was good yesterday and this morning but I couldn't get the tires up to temperature and struggled with locking fronts, " a frustrated Button said. "I'm disappointed to be so far down and there's a bit of head scratching to do, but at least I'm on the clean side of the grid and there's a couple of long straights."

Splitting the two McLarens are Nico Rosberg’s Mercedes (1m36.535s) and Felipe Massa (1m36.571s).

Robert Kubica (1m36.824s) did not content for pole after topping practice 3, ending up with eighth quickest time, and said: "The car had a lot more oversteer and if we'd got everything right we might have been a couple of tenths quicker but we're right on the limit here. Unfortunately I will be on the dirty side of the grid and the two sides were massively different when we tried them this morning, but maybe if it rains there won't be so much difference. Everyone is very close as well, so it could be a tough race."

Michael Schumacher (1m35.950s) qualified the second Mercedes ninth, four hundredths quicker than Rubens Barrichello (1m35.998s), who was not happy that his former Ferrari teammate blocked one of his Q2 runs.

"I don't want it to become personal," Barrichello said, "but we've had one or two problems, like Hungary. I'm down to earth and cool and I try to respect both the quick cars and the slower ones. Michael apologized and said that the team didn't tell him, but you do have mirrors…. In the end though I did an awesome lap in Q3 and I hoped it would have put us closer. Tomorrow though, anything can happen."

The F1 paddock is expecting rain at the new Yeongam venue.

After a dry inaugural race weekend in South Korea so far, forecasts are predicting rain later on Saturday and overnight, with a very high chance of more heavy showers on race-day morning.

And the threat of rain for 1500 local on Sunday – the scheduled race start – is more than 50 per cent, leaving some drivers worried about the effect of a wet track atop the new and already low-grip surface.

"It's going to be tough whatever the weather does," warned McLaren's Jenson Button.

QUOTES

McLaren-Mercedes

Lewis Hamilton (4th, 1:36.062): "The team made a phenomenal effort to get all the new parts to the track for this race, and everybody has done a fantastic job at the track all weekend. We were very quick in practice, so I don't know where the Red Bulls found an extra half a second in Q3. Still, it's important to remember that we're still in the fight: we make good starts, and there are some long straights here, which should suit us. I feel that we're competitive – the car is the best it's ever been and our long runs are strong. We just need to do the best we can with what we have – we can't ask any more of the guys back at the factory, or the guys here, and I don't think I could have asked for any more from me. So, yes, we can still have a very good race tomorrow."

Jenson Button (7th, 1:36.731): "Yesterday and this morning I was very happy with the car; the balance was extremely good and we were looking strong. This afternoon I couldn't get the tires up to temperature and struggled a bit with locking fronts and rears. I didn't have enough grip and couldn't find enough pace. It's going to be a bit tough tomorrow, whatever the weather does. But the good news is that I'll be starting from the clean side of the grid, and there are a couple of long straights after the first corner, so it'll be a fun first lap!"

Martin Whitmarsh, Team Principal: "The conditions in qualifying today were pretty challenging – low-grip Tarmac combined with low-ish track temperatures – and as a result it was difficult to get the tires up to optimal operating temperature fast enough. Both our drivers drove sensibly and well to get safely through to Q3 – and, once there, we elected to give them each two single-lap runs. They both drove very good laps – but as things turned out it wasn't easy to nail a time on a single lap. However, we're very positive about tomorrow's race. We've got a very good race car, with strong straight-line speed, and as a result both Jenson and Lewis will be able to drive attacking races."

Mercedes GP

Nico Rosberg (5th, 1:36.535): "I'm very pleased with fifth place and it is the best possible position that we could have achieved today. It's nice to be ahead of one of the McLaren and Ferrari cars and also Robert who has been very close to us recently. We're in a good position for the race tomorrow. Strategy will be crucial with the tire graining but we are strong in that area and with a bit of luck, it would be nice to give the team a great result."

Michael Schumacher (9th, 1:36.950): "I had a busy qualifying getting everything together with some changes we made but I'm quite happy with my position. There was no room for much more today. The team did a great job getting both cars into Q3 and we will be starting from the better side of the track in my opinion. I'm quite optimistic for tomorrow and we should score some points, especially as our set-up is focused on the race. We had a good race pace in practice yesterday and I'm looking forward to the first Korean Grand Prix."

Ross Brawn, Team Principal: "We have seen another solid performance from the team and our drivers here with Nico putting in a particularly good lap in qualifying today to achieve fifth place. The team have got the most out of the car and adapted well to the new circuit. We have good straight-line speed and the car seems reasonable on high fuel so we can look forward to an exciting race tomorrow."

Norbert Haug, Mercedes Motorsport Director: "As in recent races, we achieved the best possible result with our current package today. A superb lap from Nico on this challenging new circuit puts him in fifth place on the grid and Michael also has the opportunity to score good points from ninth place. The forecast predicts rain for Sunday so we may be able to benefit as our drivers have shown strong performances in these conditions. Our ultimate goal is to fight for pole positions and race wins however it is satisfying for everyone in the team when we achieve the best result possible. Compliments and thanks to the organizers here in Korea for building a thrilling new race track. With very hard work, the track is ready 'just in time' and I am sure everyone in the paddock wishes for a great race tomorrow as a reward."

Red Bull-Renault

Sebastian Vettel (1st, 1:35.585): "It's a special feeling to be on pole – it was very close. The track is good here – in the first sector there's not so much you can do, just hit your braking points at the right time, but the second and third sectors are quite entertaining with nice flowing corners, but it's easy to make a mistake. It was a small margin for pole, but it was enough and it was a good result as yesterday we didn't have smooth running. We had a puncture in the practice, so I hadn't done too many laps on the new track, which makes it harder to get into a rhythm. You have to take every race as it comes, Japan was a good result, but now in Korea all the focus is on tomorrow's race. The car was quick today, no doubt, but you still need to get the job done and the most important thing is that you remain calm, which we all did as we knew what we had in us. So, we got the job done today, but let's see for tomorrow."

Mark Webber (2nd, 1:35.659): "I wasn't that happy on my first timed laps to be honest, so it was more comfortable for me to do two timed laps for my last run. It worked out okay, but obviously it was very close with Seb and I got second on the grid. It's not a bad position to start the race, but it would have been nice to get pole, still – we can get a good result from there. I'm starting on the dirty side of the grid tomorrow and Fernando (Alonso, in third) will be solid off the line, but that's not going to make or break the Championship, so we'll press on from there – we're certainly in a good position."

Christian Horner, Sporting Director: "A fantastic team performance today. A one two start on the grid at this new circuit is a great result and the drivers were again split by the narrowest of margins. They elected to take different strategies in Q3, Sebastian focused on two one-lap runs while Mark elected to do two laps on his last run. The difference between the two of them was almost identical to the gap in Japan, so a great team performance. We need to continue this tomorrow and hopefully the weather won't interfere with the race."

Fabrice Lom, Renault: "A really impressive performance from our two drivers on this new track – we are the first team in history to have pole and the first front row on the grid in Korea, so we are very proud of that. It's also good for the Championship as Alonso is behind us with the McLarens further back, so we are in good shape. Let's hope there's not too much rain, as predictions are not good for tomorrow's weather – but we will prepare with our usual professionalism."

Ferrari

Fernando Alonso (3rd, 1:35.766): "I am satisfied with how things went in qualifying and I think I showed all the potential of our car. In Q1, I felt that we could be really competitive, which was then reinforced in Q2 and Q3. Then, with pole having escaped me, I think that it is better to be third rather than second, because starting from the dirty side would be very difficult. We expected Red Bull to be very strong, as it's not by chance they have taken fourteen poles from seventeen attempts this year. However, the gap is pretty close, which shows that tomorrow we can be in the fight. We must get a good start without taking too many risks at the first corner, because in the race, anything could happen and the most important thing will be to get to the checkered flag. In theory there are a couple of places where overtaking seems possible, but we will have to wait until tomorrow to see if that is really the case. Tire degradation seems higher than at other tracks, so we will need to do a good job in managing them and in terms of the strategy: the softs give more grip while with the hards, we are all struggling to make them work at their best. Maybe it will be a case of doing more than one pit stop. On top of that, there is the unknown factor linked to the weather. The situation is definitely better than in Suzuka: the gap to the Red Bulls is smaller and we have kept strong rivals like Hamilton and Kubica behind us."

Felipe Massa (6th, 1:36.571): "I am not happy, especially because sixth place means I have to start on the less clean side of the grid, which is a major handicap on a surface as dirty as this one. I was very pleased at the end of Q2, because the car was more competitive than yesterday and I thought I could fight for a top place. Unfortunately, I had a bit of traffic on the only run I did in Q3 on my last set of new soft tires: a shame because the car was going well, but I was not able to get the most out of it. The situation in terms of grip has improved, even with the harder tires and I expect that trend to continue tomorrow. I am expecting to have a very tough race. If it was to rain it could be even more slippery than usual, given the condition of the track surface."

Stefano Domenicali, Team Principal: "It was a very closely contested session, with closer gaps than usual. We did our utmost and we can say that, overall, we are reasonably pleased with this result, even our aim is always to try and be in front of everyone. In Q3, Fernando produced two great laps: it would have been hard to do better and it is very important that he has avoided starting from the dirty side of the grid. Felipe is back on great form this weekend: it's a shame that for his only run on new soft tires in Q3, he was not able to show all the potential demonstrated in Q2, but I firmly believe he can have a good race tomorrow. And that's the day that matters, when the points are given out. On a track one knows, the usual parameters apply – the start, reliability, strategy, the work of the team and the drivers – on a completely new one like Yeongam, there will also be the unknown factor of how the track will evolve, as well as how that might be affected by the rain forecast for tonight. All we can do is concentrate on our job and do our best in a race which looks like being very unpredictable."

Chris Dyer: "We had another day with no technical problems on either car, which is always positive. Qualifying was a bit different to usual, especially because the difference in performance between the two types of tire Bridgestone has brought here is greater, which made the decision on how to manage the sets of tires during the various parts of the session less obvious. After a couple of Grands Prix where this part of the weekend has been difficult for us, here we managed to get both cars into Q3 and with Fernando, we just missed out on pole. As we have seen so often this season, our main rivals managed to find something right at the last in order to get ahead of us. Tomorrow, we can expect a very unusual start, because getting away from the clean side will, in theory, produce a significant advantage: therefore, for Fernando it was better to be third rather than second, while unfortunately Felipe will start from the dirty side. I am expecting a very interesting race, where the tire performance over a long run will heavily affect the outcome. So far, both the hards and the softs have presented us with problems and the track conditions could change still more. Then again, if it was to rain tonight, as predicted, everything could go back to zero again."

Williams-Cosworth

Rubens Barrichello (10th, 1:36.998): "That was a great qualifying in that the spirit was very high. I went into Q3 knowing that we had four tenths to make up; I did a good lap and made up the difference so I'm delighted. We are still at the tail end of the top ten, and we don't seem to be as competitive as we expected we would be, but that's where we are. The track is quite slippery so I'm predicting a lot will happen in the race and I'm hoping we will get some points out of it."

Nico Hulkenberg (11th, 1:37.620): "It was as tight as we thought it was going to be out there today. It's always disappointing not to get into Q3. The lap I was on would have pushed me into the top ten, but I lost the rear in turn 12 and was forced to abort the lap. P11 is still a good position to start from. We have the flexibility to choose our tires so we will give that thought overnight and come up with a good strategy. There are overtaking opportunities here so there's still a chance to score points tomorrow."

Patrick Head, Director of Engineering: "Of course it's disappointing not to get two cars into the top ten, but I don't think we're as strong here as we have been at other tracks. It's going to be a very interesting race as we understand there's some rain coming. That will make tire strategy interesting, so we're looking forward to it."

Renault

Robert Kubica (8th, 1:36.824): "The car had more oversteer than during free practice and I wasn't completely comfortable. If we had got everything perfect, we could probably have been a couple of tenths quicker, but we're right on the limit here. Unfortunately, starting eighth also means that I will start from the dirty side of the grid. This morning, in the dry, there was a huge difference between the two sides, but if it rains tomorrow perhaps it won't be such a disadvantage. It's not going to be an easy race, because everybody is very close together in terms of performance, but I will try to do my best tomorrow afternoon."

Vitaly Petrov (15th, 1:37.799): "I was hoping to get into the top 10 today, to minimize the effect of the grid penalty, and it looked reasonable after Q1. During the second part of qualifying, I made a mistake by pushing too hard, touched the curb and spun. The tires were then so dirty that I couldn't set a proper competitive lap time afterwards. It's a pity, but I must now focus on the race, and take every opportunity that comes to me."

Eric Boullier, Team Principal: "We looked competitive during every practice session, so it is clearly disappointing that we were unable to repeat that level of performance in qualifying. However, we must now focus on the race. We know that our car is quick on the straights and we hope it will be competitive in race trim. We can look forward to aggressive performances from both drivers, and our goal will be to make up as many positions as possible tomorrow afternoon."

Alan Permane, Chief Race Engineer: "After our performances in practice yesterday and this morning, we cannot be happy with eighth and 15th places in qualifying. Robert was complaining of more oversteer than this morning, when he had been pretty happy with the car, so we need to look at the data and understand what happened. As for Vitaly, he had a difficult session and will also incur the five-place grid penalty from Suzuka. We will need to be creative tomorrow if we wish to get both cars into the points."

Force India-Mercedes

Adrian Sutil (14th, 1:37.783): "Although P14 isn't exactly what we would have hoped for, we were still quite close to the top 12 and with a bit of luck could have been even closer to Q3. In Q2 I had some traffic on my first lap and then my second was good, but it was tough out there with the tires. That said, it's a great track they have built here. I really enjoyed driving on it – there's a lot of challenges and kinks and it was really so grippy at the end of the session that it was a real pleasure to drive each lap. From where we are on the grid it's going to be a great race."

Vitantonio Liuzzi (18th, 1:38.955): "We suffered with a lot of graining on the soft tires today. We missed out on the last run in the morning because of a puncture and didn't try the option tires, but we didn't expect them to grain as badly as they did. The first two laps of the final run were good and the first two sectors of the third lap were looking really good – I was on for a 1:38.2 at that point – but then the tires grained so badly I lost a lot of time through the last two corners as the car started to understeer a lot. Based on this wear rate it's going to be an interesting race for sure."

Dr. Vijay Mallya, Team Principal: "The Korean Grand Prix organizers have done a fantastic job with the circuit and the facilities here. The track seems to be a real modern classic that has got great feedback from the drivers and I think this bodes extremely well for a thrilling race tomorrow. It hasn't been the kindest to us here today: we were competitive throughout the morning and weren't so far from the top 12 in the afternoon, but we've been suffering a lot with the tire graining and that's what caught us out in qualifying. That said we're still in a good position for the race tomorrow and I'm very hopeful of us doing well. I am sure the race will throw up a lot of unusual opportunities and we've got to be well poised to take any that come our way."

Toro Rosso-Ferrari

Jaime Alguersuari (16th, 1:37.853): "We can be reasonably satisfied with this result because it is so easy to gain or lose tenths here because the track has so many corners. As we come towards the final part of the season, I must say thanks to my race engineer, who has developed a very good understanding of what I need and his decisions are nearly always right. That meant I was very happy with the balance of the car and I think I got the most I could out of the soft tires. We did a good job in improving the car from yesterday and I think we can therefore expect further improvement in the race."

Sebastien Buemi (17th, 1:38.594): "I have to say I am not happy with my performance. In Q2 on my last run, we opted to go for just one flying lap, to run with less fuel in the car, but I did not get the best of laps, making a few small mistakes which, put together, cost me a lot of time. Jaime did a really strong lap so congratulations to him for that. We need to work hard now to prepare for tomorrow, when we can face a long race in which anything could be possible. Jaime's performance shows we are not that far from those just in front of us in terms of pace so let's wait and see. We were not expected to get into the points in Suzuka but we did and who knows, it might happen again here."

Laurent Mekies, Chief Engineer: "Our overall performance compared to our main competitors was not too bad, as we are relatively close in terms of lap times to the best Force India, Sauber and also Williams. The truth is that you have six cars in two tenths and we were at the bottom of that group. Therefore today, two or three tenths have proved very expensive. Overall we have improved our performance since the start of the weekend and hopefully we can take another step forward for the race. We can expect the first Korean Grand Prix to be full of surprises with those walls and the decent overtaking opportunities so hopefully it will be a good show."

Lotus-Cosworth

Jarno Trulli (19th, 1:40.521): "I'm happy with how it has gone today and I think my final lap was pretty good. The track was very dusty again in both sessions today, and that obviously affects the tires, but I think we did as well as we could have hoped for this afternoon. I want to say thank you to my mechanics again because they have been working really hard all weekend – it has been a bit of a tough couple of days so far, because the bad luck I had yesterday limited my track time, and it's thanks to the guys in the garage that I've managed to get in enough running time to set me up for that quick lap today."

Heikki Kovalainen (21st, 1:41.768): "I'm pretty disappointed with how it went today. We were looking ok this morning but I think the strategy this afternoon didn't give me a great chance to go any quicker – the traffic obviously played its part, and when you're trying to push on a dirty track it's always going to be a struggle. But we're here to fight tomorrow, and as the grip levels evolve I think our car will become stronger, so there's all to play for in the race."

Tony Fernandes, Team Principal: "A pretty good day for us, and seeing Jarno put in such a good lap at the end of Q1 after a slightly difficult weekend on his side of the garage shows exactly what he and his pit crew are made of. We made a mistake with Heikki's strategy, and that prevented him from being able to get closer to Jarno, but a good job by both drivers, and the whole team, to keep us ahead of our nearest competitors. From a team perspective, it has been very pleasing to see what a great event the race organizers have put on here in Korea. We were never in any doubt that Korea would pull something special out of the bag for us, and from the moment the cars first went out on track yesterday, the welcome Lotus Racing and the whole F1™ fraternity has had here has been outstanding. It was particularly good to see a couple of very dedicated Lotus Racing fans waving our flag in the stands, and the Korean media have given us some excellent coverage, so I think we will leave here having gained another army of new fans. We will do our best to reward them with a strong performance in tomorrow's race."

Mike Gascoyne, Technical Director: "I'm reasonably happy with the qualifying today, although it's a little disappointing that the tactics in qualifying, and the traffic, played their part in denying Heikki a clear run at a quick time. Jarno produced a very good lap to finish the best of the new teams on his final run, and I think that these grid positions give us a good chance of having a strong race tomorrow."

HRT-Cosworth

Sakon Yamamoto (23rd, 1:42.444): "I am very happy about our qualifying result at the first Korean Grand Prix. With the data we got yesterday and this morning, we could improve the car and I could do my best lap in qualifying. We were very close to the other competitors and I want to thank the team for preparing the car very well. Now we are looking forward to tomorrow, but we don't know if it's going to rain during the race. But, as always, we will try to do our best and bring both cars to the finish line again."

Bruno Senna (24th, 1:43.283): "Today we managed to work on the car as we could run more laps than yesterday. The qualifying result wasn't what we expected and maybe we could have done better with more experience on this new circuit. Tomorrow is going to be a long race and we will see what happens during the 55 laps."

Colin Kolles, Team Principal: "Both of our drivers showed a good improvement compared to yesterday. The track got more grip and consequently the lap times got quicker. We had to adapt ourselves to the changes of the circuit and we expect it to keep on improving tomorrow as well. Sakon did a very good qualifying and we could close the gap to the new teams. Unfortunately, he lost one position in the last seconds of the session, otherwise he would have been further up. The whole team was working hard again to get the best out of the cars and therefore, I want to say thank you very much. Tomorrow's race is going to be exciting and we hope to fight for positions."

BMW Sauber-Ferrari

Kamui Kobayashi (12th, 1:37.643): "Overall, I think we achieved the best possible result. It wasn't much that was missing to make it into Q3. This morning we found the track had changed a lot from yesterday. Therefore the set-up work we did before needed to be re-evaluated. In qualifying I found the car a little bit nervous, but generally okay. Our tire strategy was good, and for me it was the right decision to go for only one but longer run in Q2. On my fastest lap I wasn't lucky with traffic, but this can happen. I am looking forward to a good and challenging race tomorrow!"

Nick Heidfeld (13th, 1:37.715): "Qualifying here was a lot of fun. I had a clear lap with no traffic problems this time, and I also think my fastest lap was a good one, so I'm happy with it. In the morning we had some set-up difficulties, but this was solved before qualifying. It is not easy to get the tires to work at their best. My third lap with the softer compound was my quickest. After the front tires had been too cold I was hoping on the next lap the temperatures would go up and I would be able to improve, but instead they started graining. My grid position should be on the clean side of the track, and therefore I hope to make up positions at the start. Later it might become difficult to overtake because our top speed isn't brilliant."

James Key, Technical Director: "We made changes overnight, trying to address yesterday's weakness in the first sector. We established the downforce level which we thought was right, and we made mechanical changes. In free practice three both drivers reported the car was more oversteery, so more difficult to drive. It seemed we took a step back, with some of this in sector one, but also, compared to Friday, in sector three. For some reason not everything we changed worked the way we hoped, although the track was much more slippery and cooler than yesterday afternoon, so this was possibly a factor. Everybody did a good job to rectify the problems we had this morning. In qualifying we decided to play it safe in Q1 and go for option tires for the second run, because we didn't know what the difference was between the prime and the option. We then decided to save a set of options in Q2 on the basis lap three was possibly the quickest. We had a little bit of traffic, but both drivers did well to get their quickest time on lap three. We were just a couple of tenths off breaking into Q3. It was strange that we lost quite a bit of time in the second sector, but sector one and three were much better. It's a shame we didn't make Q3, but everybody did a good job to get out of the difficult situation from this morning. We know our race pace is always much better than qualifying, so we are looking forward to a good race tomorrow. I'm sure we can fight for points from where we are."

Virgin-Cosworth

Timo Glock (20th, 1:40.748): "Today was a pretty good qualifying session for me. We made the right change from this morning's free practice to qualifying and I had a very good first run. The second one was good as well and I was able to get everything possible out of the car. I couldn't do any more so I am happy with the result and due to Petrov's penalty we move over to the clean side of the track, which will help us at the race start tomorrow. It should be an interesting race and I'm looking forward to it."

Lucas di Grassi (22nd, 1:42.325): "It was not a very good qualifying for me today. I did not manage to properly use my second set of qualifying Option tires as in my two timed laps I got traffic and then I made a mistake, so for sure there is more to come. This is a track that improves all the time – and very quickly – and you need to be 'on it' the whole time. I'm looking forward to tomorrow and our first Korean Grand Prix. In the first few corners of the track there are a lot of overtaking opportunities, so it should be an interesting start. The race is also very long and a lot of things can happen, so we will see what happens as it unfolds."

John Booth, Team Principal: "A strong qualifying session for Timo today, who was unlucky to be pipped at the very end of the session for the new teams' pole, but at least he will start from the clean side of the track following Petrov's penalty. Lucas wasn't able to get the best out of the car but we are sure there is more to come from him in the race tomorrow. We are still experiencing quite a lot of graining on the tires, which will make the choice for tomorrow interesting, and there is also the possibility of rain. The drivers report that the track modifications made overnight have been successful, so all credit to the circuit for their hard work and we are looking forward to the inaugural Korean Grand Prix tomorrow."

Results

Pos	Driver	Team	Q1	Q2	Q3
1.	Vettel	Red Bull-Renault	1m37.123s	1m36.074s	1m35.585s
2.	Webber	Red Bull-Renault	1m37.373s	1m36.039s	1m35.659s
3.	Alonso	Ferrari	1m37.144s	1m36.287s	1m35.766s
4.	Hamilton	McLaren-Mercedes	1m37.113s	1m36.197s	1m36.062s
5.	Rosberg	Mercedes	1m37.708s	1m36.791s	1m36.535s
6.	Massa	Ferrari	1m37.515s	1m36.169s	1m36.571s
7.	Button	McLaren-Mercedes	1m38.123s	1m37.064s	1m36.731s
8.	Kubica	Renault	1m37.703s	1m37.179s	1m36.824s
9.	Schumacher	Mercedes	1m37.980s	1m37.077s	1m36.950s
10.	Barrichello	Williams-Cosworth	1m38.257s	1m37.511s	1m36.998s
11.	Hulkenberg	Williams-Cosworth	1m38.115s	1m37.620s	–
12.	Kobayashi	Sauber-Ferrari	1m38.429s	1m37.643s	–
13.	Heidfeld	Sauber-Ferrari	1m38.171s	1m37.715s	–
14.	Sutil	Force India-Mercedes	1m38.572s	1m37.783s	–
15.	Petrov	Renault	1m38.174s	1m37.799s*	–
16.	Alguersuari	Toro Rosso-Ferrari	1m38.583s	1m37.853s	–
17.	Buemi	Toro Rosso-Ferrari	1m38.621s	1m38.594s	–
18.	Liuzzi	Force India-Mercedes	1m38.955s	–	–
19.	Trulli	Lotus-Cosworth	1m40.521s	–	–
20.	Glock	Virgin-Cosworth	1m40.748s	–	–
21.	Kovalainen	Lotus-Cosworth	1m41.768s	–	–
22.	di Grassi	Virgin-Cosworth	1m42.325s	–	–
23.	Yamamoto	HRT-Cosworth	1m42.444s	–	–
24.	Senna	HRT-Cosworth	1m43.283s	–	–

* Drops five places for Japan penalty