Torrential rain has halted qualifying for the British Grand Prix during Q2, with the FIA opting to red flag the session on safety grounds.
The weather looked to have improved in the run up to qualifying, but a handful of minutes prior to the start of Q1, the rain began to fall.
Jenson Button was the surprise victim and failed to make it through to the second session, partly because his last and quickest lap was interrupted by yellow flags – the result of Timo Glock spinning.
As Q2 began, the rain became heavier and heavier until the conditions simply became undrivable. Almost all the cars experienced an off-track moment with more serious incidents involving Michael Schumacher and Fernando Alonso, both of which spun their cars.
The FIA hopes to retart the session at 15:00 (local time), almost an hour and a half after it was paused, but that’s yet to be seen and dependent upon the weather conditions.
At the time of the red flag, Sergio Perez sat top ahead of Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg, whilst Mark Webber sits 8th, Sebastian Vettel 10th and Fernando Alonso 16th.