The Dutchman from Red Bull takes the lead in Q3, overtakes Carlos Sainz and secures another pole. Hamilton is eliminated in Q2
It has already become a tradition in the still short 2024 F1 season: Red Bull seems to have some difficulties in free practice, it is not the fastest at the start of the ranking, but it shows who is in charge in the moments that matter most. In Australia it does not it was different. After not leading any of the free practices, either Q2 or Q3, Max Verstappen set an unbeatable time in Q3 and secured pole.
In Melbourne, the Dutchman was the only one to lap around 1’15 and gave Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz, who started from 2nd place, no chance. Sainz deserves to be highlighted. After missing the Saudi Arabian GP two weeks ago due to last-minute appendicitis, the Spaniard proved to be quite fast and led Q1 and Q2, easily overtaking his fast colleague, Charles Leclerc, who starts from 5th place.
The second row of the grid will have Sergio Perez, of Red Bull, and Lando Norris, of McLaren. Subsequently, the aforementioned Leclerc leaves alongside Oscar Piastri.
The disappointment of the day was Lewis Hamilton, who had to deal with an early elimination in Q2, when he was 11th. Mercedes almost saw George Russell out in that section too, but the Englishman moved up to 10th, with a time almost identical to Hamilton’s. In Q3, Russel finished in 7th place, and starts on the same row as Yuki Tsunoda.
Closing out the top-10 are the two Aston Martins, with Lance Stroll ahead of Fernando Alonso.
Find out in detail how the Australian GP ranking went.
Sainz in form in Q1. Ricciardo disappoints the fans
Daniel Ricciardo continues to go through a delicate phase in 2024. The Australian managed to set a decent lap at the end of Q1 – albeit behind Tsunoda – but soon had his time canceled for exceeding the track limit. As a result, he ended up relegated to a bitter 19th place in front of his fans. The veteran was one of four eliminated in the first ranking phase. Yes, four, because the session had one car less: Williams entered with just one car, leaving Logan Sargeant out of the GP.
In addition to Ricciardo, Nico Hulkenberg (17th), Pierre Gasly (18th) and Guanyu Zhou (20th) crashed in the first phase. Zhou lost part of his wing due to the vibrations of the curb at Turn 10, making any attempt to improve in the final sector impossible. Esteban Ocon even grazed the wall at turn 0, punctured a tire, but managed to qualify, unlike his Alpine colleague.
In the leading group, demonstrating that he is 100% recovered from the appendicitis that took him out of the Saudi Arabian GP two weeks ago, the fastest in the first third of the standings was Carlos Sainz, of Ferrari, with 1′ 16s731, After him, came: Sergio Perez, Max Verstappen, Charles Leclerc and Fernando Alonso.
Hamilton falls by the wayside in Q2
Sainz and Ferrari remained in the lead in the second part of the session, with the Spaniard clocking 1’16’189. Then Leclerc arrived, ahead of Verstappen, Oscar Piastri and Perez.
The highlight of Q2 was the elimination of Lewis Hamilton, knocked out of the top 10 by Lance Stroll in the last minute. Yellow light for Mercedes, who saw George Russell pass the stage at the limit, with an almost identical time to his teammate.
In addition to the seven-time champion, who starts from 11th place, Alex Albon, Valtteri Bottas, Kevin Magnussen and Esteban Ocon were eliminated.
Verstappen shows who’s boss
Verstappen got his house in order when it matters most, Q3. The Dutchman clocked 1’16’048 in his first outing and was more than two tenths ahead of the Ferraris. Meanwhile, Alonso escaped at high speed into Turn 6, being forced to interrupt his fastest lap.
On the last lap Verstappen even climbed up to 1’15’915, guaranteeing himself pole. Sainz practically repeated his time in Q2 and took 2nd place, 0s270 behind Max. Perez, Norris is on the second row. Leclerc, always strong in qualifying, took 5th place after interrupting his last lap.
The Australian GP will start in the early hours of this Sunday, at 1am Brasilia time.
Source: Terra
Emma is a professional author and journalist, working at 247 News Update. With years of experience, she brings a unique perspective and in-depth analysis to her work.
