Chapter 239: Mercedes Continues to Dominate Qualifying
Twenty-one days might seem like a long stretch, but for Formula 1 research and development, it passes in a flash.
The Williams R&D team had an intense three weeks. Wu Shi's consecutive victories had extended his championship lead, raising expectations across the entire organization. Yet despite continuous testing and upgrades, the FW37's pace at the Hungaroring fell well short of its Silverstone performance.
Time waits for no one, however, and race weekend arrived quickly.
On Friday, July 24th, Budapest was bathed in scorching sunlight—temperatures were oppressive, but dry conditions were preferable to rain, which would introduce unpredictable challenges to the narrow circuit.
In Free Practice 1, Williams tested new setup configurations and introduced aerodynamic upgrades to the sidepod assemblies. Under current technical regulations, the complexity of these packages had become so intricate that even seasoned engineers needed careful study to parse their design. The upgrades were intended to boost downforce and cornering balance, helping the car adapt to the Hungaroring's twisty layout.
After simulator testing, both Wu Shi and Felipe Massa had voiced concerns: while downforce figures were up, the system predicted a corresponding increase in drag that would compromise stability through banked corners. Massa was blunt in his feedback, stating he could not drive comfortably with the new package. Wu Shi remained reserved—he knew the trade-off between downforce and stability could only be properly evaluated in on-track running.
Watching Massa's reaction, Wu Shi saw the pragmatism of the experienced driver. A younger Massa might have prioritized cornering speed over stability, but now, consistency was his focus.
Shortly into FP1, Sergio Pérez lost control in a fast corner and spun into a roll. Thankfully, he escaped unharmed, but his car sustained heavy damage that forced him to sit out FP2 that afternoon.
Ferrari and Red Bull showed promising pace throughout the session. McLaren also appeared to have unlocked more performance from their Honda power unit, moving away from the back of the field. The Mercedes pair easily topped the timesheets—Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg taking first and second, with Kimi Räikkönen and Daniel Ricciardo third and fourth.
Wu Shi placed seventh, while Massa was further back in 14th. Williams' performance was unremarkable, but the paddock was unsurprised—everyone knew the team had a habit of concealing their true pace in practice.
At lunch, Massa reiterated his dissatisfaction with the new aerodynamic package. Wu Shi, however, was beginning to find a rhythm—discovering fleeting balance points in the car's instability felt like solving a complex puzzle.
FP2 got underway in the afternoon, and Hamilton immediately improved his FP1 time of 1:25.000 to a blistering 1:23.000 flat. Ricciardo, who had shown strong form in the morning, suffered an engine failure—another reliability setback for Renault-powered Red Bull.
Track temperature peaked at 52°C, prompting teams to shift focus to long-run tire testing. Williams' cooling system was pushed to its limits; while telemetry showed no issues with component temperatures, Wu Shi reported feeling excessively hot in the cockpit. He relayed the concern to his engineers, though resolving such a issue overnight was impossible. Massa found the conditions manageable—a difference that reflected how each driver pushed the car to their own limits.
After Friday's sessions, both Williams drivers told reporters the car was struggling to adapt to the circuit, and their pace was affected as a result. When asked about this, Hamilton joked:
"They always say that before qualifying, then Wu Shi pops up out of nowhere and gives me a headache for the whole race."
Sebastian Vettel added his own take with a smile:
"Wu Shi has the humility typical of many Chinese athletes—you have to read between the lines. If he says the car isn't good, it's decent; if he says it's good, it's very fast. Though he hasn't said 'very good' yet!"
Turning to Ferrari's situation, Vettel noted:
"Our recent upgrades caused a lot of issues. Reverting to earlier specification parts has actually helped us find better balance here."
Telemetry data ranked Ferrari second in overall pace behind Mercedes. Wu Shi heard the interview and chuckled to himself, thinking of the future meme about Ferrari's tendency to be fast on Saturdays but struggle on Sundays—though he knew that phrase wouldn't be coined for years to come.
Unfortunately, Ferrari's momentum only lasted halfway through Saturday.
In Free Practice 3, Hamilton set an unassailable benchmark of 1:22.997, with Rosberg just 0.089 seconds behind. Vettel was third with 1:23.886—nearly a full second off Mercedes' pace. Räikkönen could complete little running due to a water leak, finishing sixth and prompting jokes about Ferrari's well-documented history with fluid system issues.
Mercedes' dominance in FP3 sent ripples through the paddock. In pre-qualifying interviews, reporters wondered if Wu Shi could work another miracle and challenge the silver cars once again.
Inside Williams, however, the mood was realistic. At the post-FP3 team meeting, Wu Shi was direct:
"My estimate for our limit lap time is exactly 1:23.000."
The team trusted his judgment after months of collaboration, and Massa confirmed:
"The car doesn't feel as good as it did at Silverstone—I expect my pace to be slightly slower."
These assessments weren't based on raw data alone, but their experience gave them significant weight. The room grew quiet until Claire Williams tapped the table gently:
"Let's not forget where we were just a few years ago—worried about scraping together points. Now we're frustrated about not matching Mercedes—that's incredible progress. There's no need to overburden yourselves. Do your jobs, execute the race plan, and that will be a success."
Her words eased the tension. The championship fight created pressure not just for the drivers, but for the entire team—especially after external criticism of their strategy at Silverstone. With Mercedes out of reach, focus shifted to securing third and fourth positions in the field; overtaking was difficult at the Hungaroring, so qualifying position would be critical to race results.
Wu Shi reviewed his engineer's lap time optimization suggestions, blending their technical input with his own on-track feel. He skipped his usual pre-qualifying nap—post-nap grogginess always affected his focus, and in any case, he was too keyed up to sleep. Knowing the car was at a disadvantage only strengthened his resolve to extract every possible tenth of a second.
Qualifying began at 2 PM local time. Based on practice data, the two Manor cars were expected to lap in 1:27–1:28 range, locking in the first two elimination spots in Q1. Sauber's pace was around 1:25–1:26, leaving just one more spot up for grabs among the midfield, where practice times clustered around 1:24. A lap under 1:24 would be more than enough to progress to Q2.
The Hungaroring's kerbs posed a particular challenge for Wu Shi—hitting them aggressively in key corners disrupted exit speed, costing 0.1–0.2 seconds per lap. Turn 2's banking also required careful positioning; getting too close to the apex increased instability due to the steep camber, so a wider line was necessary despite sacrificing some cornering speed.
Two minutes into Q1, Wu Shi headed out on track. While advancing to Q2 was straightforward, he needed every lap of practice he could get.
"Wu Shi is out early once again," the commentator noted. "Earlier interviews had both Williams drivers describing difficulties with the car here—but we've seen them surprise us before, so all eyes remain on Wu Shi as a potential threat to Mercedes' pole position hopes."
Qualifying commentary was more relaxed than race coverage, with room for analysis and speculation as sessions unfolded.
Wu Shi aimed to break into the 1:22 range, but traffic disrupted his first flying lap, leaving him with a 1:23.700—still more than sufficient to progress. He stayed out for another run, experimenting with his line through Turn 2: the wider approach improved stability but felt sluggish on exit. He marked the adjustment on his steering wheel display and continued.
His second flying lap clocked 1:23.233—a solid time, though still above the 1:23 barrier. He was preparing for a third attempt when Q1 concluded.
Hamilton topped the session with 1:22.890, Rosberg second with 1:22.979—Mercedes' pace was dominant even on a circuit not traditionally reliant on engine power, highlighting the overall strength of their car package.
Wu Shi was third, with Vettel fourth (1:23.312), Daniil Kvyat fifth (1:23.587), and Carlos Sainz Jr. sixth (1:24.623). Eliminated were Jenson Button, both Sauber drivers, and the two Manor entries.
In Q2, tire conservation was a priority under FIA regulations, so Wu Shi and his team agreed on a one-flying-lap strategy. Multiple runs would require unnecessary laps for warm-up and cool-down, wasting valuable rubber.
Drawing on his Q1 experience and benefiting from improved track conditions, Wu Shi set a 1:23.198 on his first attempt and returned to the garage immediately. Vettel and Räikkönen adopted the same approach, completing just three laps each—Vettel posting 1:23.168 to edge ahead of Wu Shi, while Räikkönen clocked 1:23.460 to secure his place in Q3.
As the early runners finished their work, other drivers began their push laps. Max Verstappen set a respectable 1:23.662 for Toro Rosso. Hamilton and Rosberg had to abort their first attempts due to Fernando Alonso's car stopping on track, but quickly returned for a second run—Rosberg lowering his time to 1:22.775, with Hamilton responding with a dominant 1:22.285. The gap highlighted Hamilton's superior qualifying form in 2015.
The Q2 cutoff was set by Romain Grosjean at 1:23.805. Eliminated were Nico Hülkenberg, Sainz, Pérez, Valtteri Bottas, and Alonso.
The 12-minute Q3 session opened with intense action—Hamilton and Rosberg headed out early, clearly determined to leave no room for surprise challenges from Wu Shi or Ferrari. Rosberg set an initial benchmark of 1:22.766, only for Hamilton to immediately beat it with 1:22.408.
"Mercedes' pace here is truly extraordinary," the commentator noted. "Wu Shi's first flying lap is 1:23.123—0.7 seconds off pole. It's hard to see where he can find that time."
A co-commentator added:
"Let's be honest—Wu Shi's previous pole positions have come under special circumstances, either in wet conditions or when Mercedes made mistakes. In dry qualifying, Mercedes has been untouchable this season."
The consensus was clear: Mercedes' pace was demoralizingly strong.
Vettel then set 1:22.975 to take third, while Räikkönen's 1:23.107 pushed Wu Shi down to fifth. "Ferrari is back to form!" the commentator exclaimed—before noting Massa's 1:23.819 and adding, "The gap between the two Williams drivers is substantial."
After the first runs, the track briefly emptied. With five minutes remaining, all drivers switched to new soft tires for their final push.
Hamilton was first to cross the line, unleashing a stunning 1:22.020 that effectively sealed pole position. Rosberg followed but made a mistake through the Turn 13 hairpin, finishing with 1:22.595.
Wu Shi headed out late, pushing every corner to its limit. His final lap was 1:22.977—good enough for third until Vettel responded with 1:22.739, dropping him to fourth. Ferrari fans in attendance erupted in cheers; the Scuderia's resurgence was always a source of excitement in the paddock.
Räikkönen followed with strong sector times, leaving Williams engineers on edge—but he crossed the line at 1:23.020, securing fifth. The team breathed a sigh of relief: starting on the second row was a solid result.
Attention then turned to Ricciardo, who had lagged behind teammate Kvyat in the first two sessions and was expected to lap around 1:23.300. But his final run was a revelation—crossing the line at 1:22.774 to claim fourth, just 0.035 seconds behind Vettel.
Back in the paddock, Wu Shi watched the finish and smiled—he wasn't disappointed by dropping to fifth, knowing the joy Ricciardo would show with his surprise result.
When Q3 concluded, Mercedes had locked out the front row with an unassailable advantage. The starting grid was set as:
1. Hamilton
2. Rosberg
3. Vettel
4. Ricciardo
5. Wu Shi
6. Räikkönen
7. Kvyat
8. Massa
9. Verstappen
10. Grosjean
The results drew praise for Mercedes' dominance, but also jokes that despite their superior machinery, the silver cars still struggled to keep Wu Shi behind on race day. His fifth-place start—the worst of his season so far—sparked questions about whether Williams could maintain their development pace against resurgent teams like Ferrari.
Many had forgotten that Vettel was within single digits of the Mercedes drivers in the championship standings, giving fans another title contender to follow.
With overtaking opportunities limited to the opening lap particularly into Turn 1 the stage was set for a thrilling race the next day.