On Saturday evening in Bahrain, Oscar Piastri secured the second pole position of his career. The Australian McLaren driver managed to beat Mercedes driver George Russell’s time in an exciting session. Max Verstappen, who struggled throughout, had to settle for seventh place, just behind his rival and World Championship leader, Lando Norris.
Here is a quick overview of the Bahrain GP qualification.
Q1: Verstappen Barely Makes It
Under the artificial lights of the Bahrain International Circuit, Max Verstappen had a difficult start to the qualifying session. The four-time world champion from Red Bull had to abort his first fast lap after locking up while braking for turn 15. “There’s something wrong with the car,” Verstappen complained about the condition of the RB21 as he pitted for new tyres. Shortly after Verstappen, his teammate Yuki Tsunoda’s time was disqualified due to track limits, also at turn 15. Meanwhile, the McLarens dominated the first part of Q1. Lando Norris posted the fastest time (1:31.107), followed by teammate Oscar Piastri (1:31.392) and Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc (1:31.454).
With just over four minutes left on the clock, the cars went out again for a final run. Both Red Bull drivers did so without a time to their names. However, Max Verstappen made no mistake and drove his car to a 1:31.303, good for third place behind Norris and Hamilton. Tsunoda recorded the fourteenth time. Alexander Albon (Williams) was the most surprising dropout.
Q1 Dropouts: Alexander Albon, Liam Lawson, Gabriel Bortoleto, Lance Stroll, and Oliver Bearman.
Q2: Esteban Ocon’s Severe Crash
The second part of the qualification was only a few minutes underway when the red flag was raised following a severe crash by Haas driver Esteban Ocon. The Frenchman was too aggressive over the kerbstones coming out of turn 2, lost control of the steering, and subsequently crashed hard into the tyre barrier backwards. The car was heavily damaged, but the driver himself was able to get out unharmed.
With eleven minutes remaining, the session resumes. Both Mercedes cars, driven by Kimi Antonelli and George Russell, exit the pit box prematurely, but this gives them control for the remainder of the session. Piastri sets a fast time (1.30454), followed by Lando Norris (1.30,560) and Leclerc (1.31,056). Max Verstappen aborts his lap (on used softs) prematurely and gambles on one fast lap, on new rubber. It’s not a perfect lap, but it just suffices for a place in Q3, in ninth place. Tsunoda also advances as the tenth, just scraping through.
Q2 Dropouts
Jack Doohan, Isack Hadjar, Nico Hülkenberg, Fernando Alonso, Esteban Ocon.
Q3: Verstappen Complains About Brakes
On the increasingly fast track, Verstappen starts with a disappointing lap. Mainly due to a weak first sector, he ends up with 1.31,788 and thus signs for the tenth time after the first runs. Verstappen complains about his brakes over the radio. Piastri leads the timesheet (1.30,233), followed by Russell and Norris. The initial times of Lewis Hamilton and Kimi Antonelli are scrapped due to track limits.
So, it’s down to the wire for Verstappen. In the end, he has to settle for a disappointing seventh time. For a moment, Russell surprisingly applies for pole position with his fastest time (1.30,009), but in the heat of Bahrain, Piastri keeps his cool by just undercutting it (1.29,841). The third time is for Charles Leclerc (1.30,175). Lando Norris disappoints with the sixth time, especially considering the material he has at his disposal.
Top-10
Piastri, Russell, Leclerc, Antonelli, Gasly, Norris, Verstappen, Sainz, Hamilton, Tsunoda.
The Bahrain GP starts on Sunday at 15:00 UTC.
