Notes: Raikkonen disappointed with Hungarian GP qualifying run
CBSSports.com wire reports
BUDAPEST, Hungary -- Defending Formula One champion Kimi Raikkonen blamed himself for a disappointing sixth-place finish in Saturday's qualifying for the Hungarian Grand Prix, a performance that gifted Lewis Hamilton a chance to extend his overall lead in the standings.
Raikkonen foresees a difficult task in Sunday's 70-lap race at Hungaroring circuit, which is notoriously difficult to overtake and where his Ferrari team hasn't won since 2004 with Michael Schumacher.
"The car wasn't too bad, but I went off and couldn't stay on the circuit," Raikkonen said, seemingly at odds to find a reason for his mistakes. "I didn't really have it together."
The Finn, third in the standings behind Hamilton and Ferrari teammate Felipe Massa, has struggled since winning the Spanish GP in April, with only two podiums in the five races since.
Still, the 28-year-old Raikkonen remained confident about putting on a good performance having already triumphed on this winding course three years ago in a McLaren.
"It was my mistake and it's going to cost us some points," Raikkonen said. "In the race, it should be fine. We have a good car but the biggest difficulty is to get past anybody."
Glock's gumption
Toyota driver Timo Glock scored his best F1 starting place on Saturday, a day after being cleared to race at the Hungarian Grand Prix following a high-speed crash.
The German slammed into a concrete wall in a nasty accident at the preceding German GP, but he rebounded to qualify fifth on Saturday for the Hungarian GP.
An unnoticed fault with the rear suspension of the car caused his rear right tire to come off in Hockenheim, sending Glock crashing into a wall and into a hospital, although his injuries weren't serious.
Glock, whose best result in 14 F1 races was fourth in Canada in June, credited the Toyota engineers with finding the best setup for the car, saying some tire trouble in the last lap of qualifying was the only downside.
"It's good for all of us, and after Hockenheim this is the perfect answer for the faith I have in the whole team," Glock said.
Hexed hydraulics
Williams driver Nico Rosberg's chances of a top-10 place on the starting grid for the Hungarian Grand Prix were sabotaged Saturday by a hydraulic problem.
The German had posted the 14th fastest time in the initial qualifying session at the 2.722-mile Hungaroring track, and was confident he could have done better if his car hadn't broken down halfway through the second session.
"I made a mistake on my fast lap in (the first session) and lost 2½ tenths (of a second) on one corner, so my (session) time did not show the true potential of our car," Rosberg said.
Rosberg failed to reach the final qualifying session for the fourth straight race.
