Championship leader Sebastian Vettel will start the Canadian Grand Prix from pole position, but it is Williams driver Valtteri Bottas who steals the headlines after claiming a sensational third-place on the grid.
Williams have endured their worst ever start to a campaign, having yet to register a point in the opening six races.
But they are in a great position to kick-start their season in Montreal tomorrow, after Bottas registered a 1:125:897, as the Finn finished four tenths off the pace to go third fastest behind Lewis Hamilton and pole-sitter Vettel.
‘This means a lot. It’s way more up in the grid than we could have imagined. The first six races have been so difficult, so this will be a nice boost for the team. We got everything just right today.’ he said.
And Williams deputy team principal Claire Williams was quick to sing the praises of the Finn.
‘Valtteri did such a brilliant job,’ she said. ‘I can’t tell you how excited everyone is. It’s only P3, but it’s so exciting considering the season we have had. It means a lot to everyone at Williams. Valtteri is so consistent, those lap times, it’s continuous. Even in the wet, he held it together, he’s fantastic.’
It wasn’t such good news for Jenson Button, as the McLaren driver could only muster a 14th-fastest time in the wet conditions at the Circuit Gilles-Villeneuve.
‘To be fair, I’m not too upset. It’s pretty scary out there. I had my eyes closed for most of it. We struggled to get temperature into the tyres. It just didn’t go our way.’ said the former 2009 Champion.
Monaco winner Nico Rosberg will start alongside Bottas in fourth, while Vettel’s team-mate Mark Webber is in fifth, despite going quickest in final practice.
Fernando Alonso, Jean-Eric Vergne, Kimi Raikkonen, Daniel Ricciardo and Adrian Sutil make up the rest of the top 10.
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