Nico Rosberg
Nico Rosberg took pole at the inaugural Grand Prix of Europe at the Baku City Circuit Getty

Nico Rosberg was back in form and took pole position at the inaugural Grand Prix of Europe at the Baku City Circuit in Azerbaijan. Teammate Lewis Hamilton, the pre-qualifying favourite had a tough session which culminated in the Briton hitting the barriers in Q3.

Sergio Perez seemed at his best after his shunt in the final practice session and qualified in second place, but a gearbox change will see him drop five places. Daniel Ricciardo will now start from the front row along with the championship leader as Red Bull continue their resurgence. The Australian set the exact same time as Sebastian Vettel, but the Ferrari driver had to settle for third place after being slower by less than a thousandth of a second.

Kimi Raikkonen struggled during practice to find the right balance, but managed to find a pace in qualifying and bring home the second Ferrari in fifth place, but will move up a place owing to the Mexican's grid penalty.

Valtteri Bottas and Max Verstappen had a couple of on-track altercations, when the Williams driver cut-off the young Dutch sensation on Turn 1 during their hot laps on two occasions, which compromised both their final outcomes.

The McLaren-Honda team were confident going into qualifying after a good showing during practice, but failed to replicate it when it mattered as Jenson Button was knocked in Q1 and will start from 19<sup>th spot, while Fernando Alonso will start 14<sup>th after being knocked out in Q2.

Where to watch live

Race starts at 2pm BST on 19 June, with Sky Sports F1 and Sky Sports F1 HD providing live TV coverage. Real-time Internet updates are available on the Live Timing section of the sport's official website.

Top 10 results of qualifying session from the Baku City Circuit, Azerbaijan:

POS.DRIVERTEAMTIME
1NICO ROSBERGMERCEDES1:42.758
2SERGIO PEREZFORCE INDIA1:43.515
3DANIEL RICCIARDORED BULL RACING1:43.966
4SEBASTIAN VETTELFERRARI1:43.966
5KIMI RÄIKKÖNENFERRARI1:44.269
6FELIPE MASSAWILLIAMS1:44.483
7DANIIL KVYATTORO ROSSO1:44.717
8VALTTERI BOTTASWILLIAMS1:45.246
9MAX VERSTAPPENRED BULL RACING1:45.570
10LEWIS HAMILTONMERCEDES2:01.954