Max Verstappen takes his pole position tally up to 10 for the season as he is quickest for F1’s return to Losail International Circuit.
Q1
The track has been given a resurfacing since F1 was last here back in 2021, and that made for some tricky track conditions when paired with the dust being blown across the tarmac. It also meant that the track would be constantly improving throughout the session, as seen as Verstappen began to be pushed down the order somewhat despite being initially quickest. Fortunately for him, he wasn’t under any real danger of elimination, and ended up setting the fastest lap of the session.
Track limits were once again an issue in this qualifying session, with numerous drivers having times deleted for having gone too far past the white lines. This included the likes of Norris, Leclerc, Albon and Magnussen, and would be a recurring issue throughout the rest of the evening.
Stroll’s current woes were only compounded in this session, as he set a time that was only good enough for 17th. Footage caught the Canadian visibly frustrated after getting out of the car, including pushing his personal trainer. What wouldn’t have helped would be that on the other side of the garage, Alonso had been one of the fastest drivers on track, and ended Q1 in 3rd.
There was very little in it between the two Williams drivers at the end of Q1. Sargeant looked as though he could have beaten Albon in qualifying for the first time all season, but lost out by just over a tenth, whilst at the same time being pushed down to 16th and going out of Q1.
ELIMINATED
16. Logan Sargeant – Williams +0.092
17. Lance Stroll – Aston Martin +0.227
18. Liam Lawson – Alpha Tauri +0.517
19. Kevin Magnussen – Haas +0.928
20. Zhou Guanyu – Alfa Romeo +1.314
Q2
Traffic had occasionally been an issue throughout qualifying, and it was highlighted during this session as Verstappen’s preparation lap was hampered by Sainz holding him up.
Carlos Sainz looked to struggle in Q2, with his car looking notably twitchy in the high speed complex of turns 12-14. He had initially gone 9th in his final run, but had been pushed down to 12th by the end of Q2.
Perez had initially put in a time good enough to go into Q3, however he had exceeded track limits during this lap, and the time being deleted meant that he would once again see himself eliminated in Q2.
ELIMINATED
11. Yuki Tsunoda – Alpha Tauri +0.920
12. Carlos Sainz – Ferrari +0.947
13. Sergio Perez – Red Bull +1.081
14. Alex Albon – Williams +1.326
15. Nico Hulkenberg – Haas +1.402
Q3
Verstappen dominated with his first run in Q3, being the only driver to go below a 1:24.000. With the other drivers clearly not improving in their final runs by enough to challenge him, Verstappen boxed with the knowledge he’d already taken pole position for Sunday’s race.
It was heartbreak for Lando Norris right at the very end, as he became the last victim of track limit violations in qualifying. A bit of oversteer had sent him over the white lines at turn 11, turning what would have been P2 into P10. His teammate also fell victim to track limits as well, turning what would have been P2 and P4 into P6 and P10, which could have big implications in the fight for fourth against Aston Martin, especially with Alonso being promoted up to P4.
Russell and Hamilton were promoted to P2 and P3 as a result of the penalties, which will help to try and maintain their 2nd place in the constructors, and with Perez down in 13th, Hamilton has the chance to further close down on 2nd in the drivers standings.
Qualifying Results:
1. Max Verstappen – Red Bull 1:23.778
2. George Russell – Mercedes +0.441
3. Lewis Hamilton – Mercedes +0.527
4. Fernando Alonso – Aston Martin +0.591
5. Charles Leclerc – Ferrari +0.646
6. Oscar Piastri– McLaren +0.762
7. Pierre Gasly – Alpine +0.775
8. Esteban Ocon – Alpine +0.985
9. Valtteri Bottas – Alfa Romeo +1.280
10. Lando Norris – McLaren NO TIME
