Hockenheim, Germany — Nico Rosberg beat Mercedes team mate and Formula 1 championship leader Lewis Hamilton to take pole position for Sunday's 2016 German Grand Prix.
Rosberg was the fastest in all three practice runs ahead of Saturday's qualifying and set the pace again in the final of the three qualifying sessions.
Close calls
Hamilton was .107 seconds behind Rosberg, with Daniel Ricciardo and Max Verstappen taking the second row on the grid in their Red Bulls. The Ferraris of Kimi Raikkonen and Sebastian Vettel will be in the third row.
Three-times world champion Hamilton, winner of the last two titles, has won five of the last six races and leads Rosberg by six points in the standings.
Rosberg won the last race here in 2014 from pole. This was his fifth pole of the season.