Sebastian Vettel will start the Japanese Grand Prix from pole position, giving him the best possible chance at securing his second championship title on Sunday.
It was a narrow margin to second though, with Jenson Button just +0.009 behind the young German, who admitted it was a tough session, but an enjoyable one.
“What a qualifying,” he said in the post-qualifying press conference. “Yesterday I went off in free practice and damaged the wing, so it wasn’t ideal in the afternoon to prepare the car for today.
“We sat down after the practice session this morning and fortunately got everything together and were able to get every single bit out of the car in qualifying.
“It was crucial, there’s not much between Jenson and myself. It was a tough qualifying but I enjoyed it a lot. It is a long lap, you have a mega first sector, every time it is a challenge, it’s hard to get it right. I had a bit of a wobble in the first sector but got it right in the second sector.”
The 24-year-old says he still isn’t focusing on the single point he needs, no matter where Button finishes, to win back-to-back titles.
“Regarding the point or no point, I am not really focusing on that,” he added. “Tomorrow is a long race and a very challenging race.
“We start from pole position and it will be very special tomorrow. Lot of things can happen and DRS can open a couple of chances so we’ll see where we are.”
