The timing screens of Q1

At the Montmelo race track, the intense testing during offseason has led to the teams being really really close this weekend. And this is why every tenth of a second is so crucial. All teams are at their best here, and this is where you get to see the real potential of the cars. As they say in the paddock, if your car works here, it will work everywhere.

And so, as the first qualifying session unfolded, the time difference between teams was so small, that a couple of tenths could get you up 5 or 6 places. Indeed, at the end of Q1, from Alonso in P1 to Raikonnen in P12, the drivers were covered by 0.8 of a second, and Nico Rosberg in P16 was just 1.4 seconds off the pace.

This is a track where every millisecond counts, which is why Renault have gotten themselves into a nice position - they can control the pace of the race in the first stint, and really pull away when they need to. Michelin have a slight advantage at this track, but Ferrari seem to have the superior race pace and strategy.

This is about as close as it gets.