On the back of a stellar win in Monza, Ferrari’s Charles LeClerc secured pole for Sunday’s Azerbaijan Grand Prix for the forth time in as many years, beating out McLaren’s Oscar Piastri and teammate Carlos Sainz for the top spot as Lando Norris, the closest competitor to Max Verstappen in the title fight, was knocked out in Q1 for the first time in 14 races.
LeClerc’s final lap of the Baku City Circuit was a blistering three and a half tenths up from the best time by Piastri as was the quickest time of any driver all weekend as he adds to his run of poles at what many consider to be his best circuit.
HIGHLIGHTS: Watch the qualifying action from Baku as Leclerc claims pole while Norris suffers bombshell Q1 exit
Q1 Results:
With four teams all capable of securing pole the anticipation of Q1 was at an all time high as drivers took to the circuit. While most opted for soft compounds to start, Mercedes broke the trend using a set of mediums on the onset as Sergio Perez set the initial pace ahead of Sainz, LeClerc, Verstappen, Piastri, and Norris. Soon after, Williams’ Frano Colapinto split the Ferrari pair with a lap that was only about a tenth off from Perez as their mid-field rivals floundered in the drop zone.
As track conditions improved and lap times fell, LeClerc made his first statement of the afternoon as he clocked a 1:42.775s lap, clearing rival George Russell by over three tenths of a second in the process as Perez held on to third from Hamilton and Sainz.
Drivers ducked into the pits for fresh rubber as the final frantic sequence at the top ended the session with LeClerc in P1, followed by Alex Albon with a stellar lap to put himself ahead of Piastri, Gasly, Hamilton, and Verstappen. But the drama was yet to unfold as behind the leading cars championship contender Lando Norris was caught in a strange moment where yellow flags flew briefly for the slowing car of Esteban Ocon. Unable to complete his final flying lap, Norris was relegated to 17th for Sunday’s race as rival Verstappen passed through to Q2.
Drivers out in Q1:
- 16th: Daniel Ricciardo (RB)
- 17th: Lando Norris (McLaren)
- 18th: Valtteri Bottas (Kick Sauber)
- 19th: Zhou Guanyu (Kick Sauber)
- 20th: Esteban Ocon (Alpine)
Q2 Results:
Red Bull were quick to make their statement in Q2 with Verstappen and Perez going 1-2 ahead of Piastri and George Russell as the first round of laps came in. Rookie Oliver Bearman, not one to miss out, make his name known as the young driver pushed his Haas machine up to 5th ahead of the Ferrari of Carlos Sainz, with Albon, Hamilton, LeClerc, and Hulkenberg making up the top 10 spots.
While others forged on, Ferrari went out of sync on strategy, allowing LeClerc and Sainze to push to P2 and P4 respectively on a clear track, while Perez sat in his garage for the remainder of the session. With no further improvements at the top, the bottom slots in Q3 were still up for grabs as drivers improved their times.
Verstappen remained P1, followed closely by LeClerc, Perez, and George Russell. Franco Colapinto sat in fifth as fellow rookie Bearman looked to make the top 10, but final masterful laps by Alex Albon and Fernando Alonso saw the young driver out in 11th place by a narrow one and half tenths.
Drivers out in Q2:
- 11th: Oliver Bearman (Haas)
- 12th: Yuki Tsunoda (RB)
- 13th: Pierre Gasly (Alpine)
- 14th: Nico Hulkenberg (Haas)
- 15th: Lance Stroll (Aston Martin)
Q3 Results:
LeClerc was keen to take advantage of his quick pace and set the first benchmark lap of 1:41.610s, the first driver of the day to drop in a sub 1:42 lap as Carlos Sainz slotted in behind him. Oscar Piastri was third on his first run followed closely by George Russell as the Red Bull pair found themselves in fifth and sixth as Verstappen lost tie due to a power slide in final sector.
Lewis Hamilton was having a less than ideal session as the Mercedes driver complained of low temperature in his tires, but still managed enough pace for 7th ahead of Albon, Colapinto, and Alonso.
As drivers emerged from the garages for the final runs, Alex Albon found himself in the middle of a truly odd situation as the Williams driver was releases with an airbox fan still attached to his car, forcing him to pull off after pit exit as he tried to remove and toss the unit to the marshals before making it back to the start/finish line for his final timed lap.
The final sequence saw LeClerc perform a masterclass of a lap, dropping his time an additional three tenths of a second as Oscar Piastri slotted his McLaren between the Ferrari pair, relegating Sainz to third. Sergio Perez ended forth in what has been one of his strongest performances to date as George Russell split Perez and Verstappen – beaten for the first time this year by Perez in qualifying. Hamilton and Alonso ended Q3 in seventh and eighth as Colapinto and Albon – unable to turn a final lap – rounded out the top 10.
***Post session technical checked revealed Pierre Gasly failed to have enough fuel on board for sample check and has been disqualified. He will start from the pit lane***
With the grid set, will it be another Ferrari victory or will Piastri’s first lap aggression propel him to his second win in 2024. It’s lights out at 15:00 local time.
Free Practice 1 Report: CLICK HERE
Free Practice 2 Report: CLICK HERE
Free Practice 3 Report: CLICK HERE
FORMULA 1 QATAR AIRWAYS AZERBAIJAN 2024 Schedule
| Date | Session | Time (Local Circuit) |
| Sept. 13th | Practice 1 | 13:30 – 14:30 |
| Practice 2 | 17:00 – 18:00 | |
| Sept. 14th | Practice 3 | 12:30 – 1:30 |
| Qualifying | 16:00 – 17:00 | |
| Sept. 15th | Race | 15:00 |
Qualifying Results:
Pos | No | Driver | Car | Q1 | Q2 | Q3 | Laps |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 16 | Charles Leclerc | Ferrari | 1:42.775 | 1:42.056 | 1:41.365 | 20 |
2 | 81 | Oscar Piastri | McLaren Mercedes | 1:43.033 | 1:42.598 | 1:41.686 | 19 |
3 | 55 | Carlos Sainz | Ferrari | 1:43.357 | 1:42.503 | 1:41.805 | 23 |
4 | 11 | Sergio Perez | Red Bull Racing Honda RBPT | 1:43.213 | 1:42.263 | 1:41.813 | 15 |
5 | 63 | George Russell | Mercedes | 1:43.139 | 1:42.329 | 1:41.874 | 20 |
6 | 1 | Max Verstappen | Red Bull Racing Honda RBPT | 1:43.097 | 1:42.042 | 1:42.023 | 20 |
7 | 44 | Lewis Hamilton | Mercedes | 1:43.089 | 1:42.765 | 1:42.289 | 22 |
8 | 14 | Fernando Alonso | Aston Martin Aramco Mercedes | 1:43.472 | 1:42.426 | 1:42.369 | 19 |
9 | 43 | Franco Colapinto | Williams Mercedes | 1:43.138 | 1:42.473 | 1:42.530 | 20 |
10 | 23 | Alexander Albon | Williams Mercedes | 1:42.899 | 1:42.840 | 1:42.859 | 19 |
11 | 50 | Oliver Bearman | Haas Ferrari | 1:43.471 | 1:42.968 | 14 | |
12 | 22 | Yuki Tsunoda | RB Honda RBPT | 1:43.337 | 1:43.035 | 16 | |
DQ | 10 | Pierre Gasly | Alpine Renault | 0 | |||
13 | 27 | Nico Hulkenberg | Haas Ferrari | 1:43.101 | 1:43.191 | 14 | |
14 | 18 | Lance Stroll | Aston Martin Aramco Mercedes | 1:43.370 | 1:43.404 | 14 | |
15 | 3 | Daniel Ricciardo | RB Honda RBPT | 1:43.547 | 9 | ||
16 | 4 | Lando Norris | McLaren Mercedes | 1:43.609 | 7 | ||
17 | 77 | Valtteri Bottas | Kick Sauber Ferrari | 1:43.618 | 7 | ||
18 | 24 | Zhou Guanyu | Kick Sauber Ferrari | 1:44.246 | 10 | ||
19 | 31 | Esteban Ocon | Alpine Renault | 1:44.504 | 8 |
