Rockenfeller scores last-gasp Race 2 pole at Hockenheim

The track started out damp after overnight rain, but with more showers forecast, teams were keen to get out on track as soon as possible as the surface was drying quickly.

The early laps on wet tyres were in the 1m45s ballpark, but Paul di Resta was the first on slicks and slammed in a twitchy 1m42.829s. He was demoted briefly by the Audis of Mike Rockenfeller and Timo Scheider, driving with a bandaged hand after a first-lap crash yesterday.

Di Resta grabbed pole back with a 1m40.564s, with Rockenfeller taking it back by a couple of tenths. Augusto Farfus then lowered the bar under the 1m40s bracket, swapping the quickest time with di Resta, Rockenfeller, Scheider, Edoardo Mortara and Mattias Ekstrom as pole changed hands again and again.

Gary Paffett and Robert Wickens took a turn at the top for Mercedes, before series rookie Tom Blomqvist snatched it. Farfus even aborted a lap that would have been quickest for a second set of tyres as the track dried completely for the closing minutes.

With three minutes to go, Scheider was on pole, before di Resta demoted him. Ekstrom snatched top spot with two minutes on the clock, then Rockenfeller took it.

Ekstrom grabbed pole with 41s remaining, with Mortara taking P2 as the chequered flag flew – but more cars were still on flying laps.

Ekstrom lowered his pole time to 1m34.721s, but Rockenfeller then grabbed it with 1m34.516s. Miguel Molina snatched second, just three hundredths shy of pole, making it an Audi 1-2-3.

Molina will start fifth, however, as he has a three-place grid penalty for spinning out Antonio Felix da Costa yesterday.

Reigning champion Marco Wittmann suffered an early off at the stadium hairpin, lucky to escape the wet gravel trap, but recovered to be top BMW in fourth, ahead of Mortara, and the BMWs of Martin Tomczyk and da Costa.

Paffett dropped to P8 but was still the best Mercedes, with di Resta getting mired in traffic down in 12th. Yesterday’s winner, Jamie Green, will start back in 19^th, and was 1.3s off the pace.

Qualifying results

* – Molina has three-place grid penalty