Azerbaijan GP - Qualifying

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Qatar Airways Azerbaijan GP

Qualifying

September 14, 2024

Charles Leclerc secured his fourth consecutive pole position at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix after a stunning performance in qualifying.

On the other hand, McLaren's Oscar Piastri put up a strong challenge but fell short of Leclerc's pace, settling for a commendable second place on the grid. The battle between these two drivers added an extra layer of excitement to the qualifying session, setting the stage for an intense race.

However, the qualifying session brought disappointment for Lando Norris, who faced a setback after being eliminated in Q1 due to an unfortunate yellow flag incident. Starting from 17th position, Norris now faces an uphill task in the race, especially considering his championship aspirations.

With Max Verstappen holding a significant lead in the drivers' standings, Norris's hopes of closing the gap took a hit. The McLaren driver will need to deliver a stellar performance to overcome the challenges and make up ground in the championship battle.

Despite the setback, Norris can draw some comfort from Verstappen's qualifying position, as the Red Bull driver could only manage sixth on the grid. This opens up an opportunity for Norris to capitalize on his rivals' positions and make a strong comeback in the race.

Reflecting on the yellow flag incident, Norris expressed frustration at the circumstances that led to his early exit from qualifying.

"Just everyone did their second laps, and I didn't," Norris stated. "Just unlucky, that's all.'

"It was Ocon on the left. I had to lift."

Leclerc will be striving for his second back-to-back win following his triumph at the Italian Grand Prix a fortnight ago. Despite his remarkable qualifying performances in Baku, Leclerc has yet to secure a victory in Azerbaijan, with his prime chance dashed by an engine failure in 2022.

When questioned about the significance of a victory, he responded: 

"It would be nice! In 2021 and 2023 it was quite unexpected the pole positions. We didn't have the pace in the car to win.

"In 2022 we had a good car and then the engine blew up, so hopefully the pace is there and we don't have anything which stops us from winning it.

"But before thinking about the final result there are still a lot of laps around this track and it's a very difficult track. So we will see tomorrow. In the meantime I will just make sure that I am doing the best preparation possible."

Carlos Sainz from Ferrari will begin the race from third position, followed by Pérez, while Mercedes' George Russell will be positioned between the Red Bulls in fifth place.

Starting from seventh will be Lewis Hamilton for Mercedes, leading Aston Martin's Fernando Alonso and the two Williams drivers, Franco Colapinto and Alex Albon.

In just his second race for Williams, Colapinto performed better than his teammate when he was called in to replace Logan Sargeant for the Italian Grand Prix. However, Albon's final lap was affected as he had to slow down and remove a cooling fan stuck in the car's airbox, which caused him to exit the pit lane at a reduced speed.

Oliver Bearman will be starting in 11th place on the grid for Sunday's race, filling in for Haas driver Kevin Magnussen for this weekend. Bearman is expected to join the team permanently next year, but he is substituting for Magnussen in Baku after the Haas regular had his super licence suspended for reaching a 12th penalty point at the Italian Grand Prix two weeks ago.

Bearman also started 11th on his Formula 1 debut in Saudi Arabia when he subbed in for Sainz at Ferrari earlier this year.

Yuki Tsunoda secured 12th place on the grid for RB ahead of Alpine's Pierre Gasly and the second Haas of Nico Hülkenberg. Lance Stroll will start 15th after setting the slowest time in Q2, nearly a full second off the effort of Aston Martin teammate Alonso in the same session.

RB's Daniel Ricciardo will start 16th ahead of Norris, with the two Saubers of Valtteri Bottas and Zhou Guanyu in 18th and 19th. Ocon qualified last after clipping the wall on his fastest Q1 lap, but will start ahead of Zhou due to a power unit grid penalty for the Sauber driver.

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Azerbaijan GP 2024 Qualifying Result

Disqualified from Q1

16. Lando Norris, McLaren (1:43.609)

1. Valtteri Bottas, Sauber (1:43.618)

2. Zhou Guanyu, Sauber (1:44.246)

3. Esteban Ocon, Alpine (1:44.504)

4. Pierre Gasly, Alpine (1:43.179)

Disqualified from Q2

11. Oliver Bearman, Haas (1:42.968)

1. Yuki Tsunoda, RB (1:43.035)

2. Nico Hülkenberg, Haas (1:43.191)

3. Lance Stroll, Aston Martin (1:43.404)

4. Daniel Ricciardo, RB (1:43.547)

   
   

Top 10 Qualifying from Azerbaijan GP 2024

1. Charles Leclerc, Ferrari (1:42.775)

2. Oscar Piastri, McLaren (1:43.033)

3. Carlos Sainz, Ferrari (1:43.357)

4. Sergio Pérez, Red Bull (1:43.213)

5. George Russell, Mercedes (1:43.139)

6. Max Verstappen, Red Bull (1:43.097)

7. Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes (1:43.089)

8. Fernando Alonso, Aston Martin (1:43.472)

9. Franco Colapinto, Williams (1:43.138)

10. Alexander Albon, Williams (1:42.899)