Event: Chinese Grand Prix
Track: Shanghai International Circuit
Weather: 22.0°C Cloudy & Dry
Tarmac: 34.5°C Dry
Humidity: 56.0%
Wind: 5.4 km//h South
Max Verstappen scored the 37th F1 pole position of his career during the 2024 Chinese Grand Prix qualifying session today. He scored pole position for all 5 GP's up till now this season, which hasn't happened since 1999. It also was his maiden career P1 start on the Shanghai circuit and the 100th pole position for the Red Bull Racing team.
Q1: Surprising Exits and Early Struggles
The opening segment of qualifying at the Shanghai International Circuit presented a series of unexpected turns as several prominent drivers faced early eliminations. Notably, Lewis Hamilton, who has been experimenting with different setups alongside his teammate George Russell, found himself struggling significantly. Despite their similar car setups this morning, Hamilton's adjustments did not yield the desired effects, relegating him to a disappointing 18th place finish.
Other casualties of Q1 included Zhou Guanyu, who despite the support of his home crowd, couldn't secure a spot in the next round, finishing 16th. The elimination list was rounded off by Kevin Magnussen, Yuki Tsunoda, and Logan Sargeant, who faced his own challenges on the track, including a spin that undoubtedly compromised his performance.
Throughout the session, the track conditions appeared to challenge several teams, but Max Verstappen from Red Bull showed formidable pace, topping the session and setting the tone for his rivals.
Q2: Midfield Battles Intensify
As the qualifying progressed to Q2, the intensity on the track escalated with teams like Ferrari and McLaren showing some promise. Ferrari's Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz were in close contention, with Sainz managing to narrowly outperform his teammate by just 0.031 seconds by the session's end. Both Ferrari drivers, however, struggled to challenge the pace set by the front runners.
This session saw the elimination of Lance Stroll, Daniel Ricciardo, Esteban Ocon, Alex Albon, and Pierre Gasly, each failing to make the cut into the top ten. Sergio Perez had a particularly nerve-wracking session, nearly getting eliminated in Q1 and facing continuous challenges to maintain pace with the frontrunners.
Q3: Verstappen Dominates for Pole
The final segment of qualifying, Q3, was a showcase of Max Verstappen’s supremacy as he clinched his first pole position at the Shanghai International Circuit in dominant fashion. The Dutchman's performance was nearly flawless, outpacing his teammate Perez by 0.322 seconds and securing his fifth consecutive pole of the season.
The battle for the remaining positions was fiercely contested. Fernando Alonso managed to secure an impressive third place for Aston Martin, showcasing the potential of the team's upgraded vehicle. Lando Norris followed closely in fourth, demonstrating McLaren's competitive edge.
Ferrari’s drivers ended the session in less desirable positions, with Leclerc finally out-qualifying Sainz but both drivers unable to challenge the top three. Mercedes continued to grapple with their form, as Russell managed only an eighth-place finish, further illustrating the team's ongoing struggles.
The qualifying session set the stage for what promises to be an exciting race day, with various teams positioned to capitalize on the Shanghai circuit's overtaking opportunities. Max Verstappen's pole position places him in an ideal spot to convert his qualifying success into a race victory, while his rivals will be eager to challenge the reigning champion on race day.
The quickest sector times during qualifying for the GP were:
- 24.910 sec by Sergio Pérez - Red Bull RB20
- 28.168 sec by Max Verstappen - Red Bull RB20
- 40.511 sec by Max Verstappen - Red Bull RB20
1:31.547 was the pole position lap time of the last GP qualifying session in 2019. This time was driven by Valtteri Bottas in the Mercedes W10.
Qualifying Times 2024 Chinese GP
| Pos | No | Driver | Team | Q1 | Q2 | Q3 | Laps |
| 1 | 1 | Max Verstappen | Red Bull | 1:34.742 | 1:33.794 | 1:33.660 | 18 |
| 2 | 11 | Sergio Pérez | Red Bull | 1:35.457 | 1:34.026 | 1:33.982 | 19 |
| 3 | 14 | Fernando Alonso | Aston Martin | 1:35.116 | 1:34.652 | 1:34.148 | 15 |
| 4 | 4 | Lando Norris | McLaren | 1:34.842 | 1:34.460 | 1:34.165 | 15 |
| 5 | 81 | Oscar Piastri | McLaren | 1:35.014 | 1:34.659 | 1:34.273 | 16 |
| 6 | 16 | Charles Leclerc | Ferrari | 1:34.797 | 1:34.399 | 1:34.289 | 20 |
| 7 | 55 | Carlos Sainz | Ferrari | 1:34.970 | 1:34.368 | 1:34.297 | 17 |
| 8 | 63 | George Russell | Mercedes | 1:35.084 | 1:34.609 | 1:34.433 | 20 |
| 9 | 27 | Nico Hülkenberg | Haas | 1:35.068 | 1:34.667 | 1:34.604 | 21 |
| 10 | 77 | Valtteri Bottas | Sauber | 1:35.169 | 1:34.769 | 1:34.665 | 15 |
| 11 | 18 | Lance Stroll | Aston Martin | 1:35.334 | 1:34.838 | 12 | |
| 12 | 3 | Daniel Ricciardo | Racing Bulls | 1:35.443 | 1:34.934 | 12 | |
| 13 | 31 | Esteban Ocon | Alpine | 1:35.356 | 1:35.223 | 15 | |
| 14 | 23 | Alex Albon | Williams | 1:35.384 | 1:35.241 | 14 | |
| 15 | 10 | Pierre Gasly | Alpine | 1:35.287 | 1:35.463 | 15 | |
| 16 | 24 | Zhou Guanyu | Sauber | 1:35.505 | 8 | ||
| 17 | 20 | Kevin Magnussen | Haas | 1:35.516 | 6 | ||
| 18 | 44 | Lewis Hamilton | Mercedes | 1:35.573 | 6 | ||
| 19 | 22 | Yuki Tsunoda | Racing Bulls | 1:35.746 | 9 | ||
| 20 | 2 | Logan Sargeant | Williams | 1:36.358 | 7 |
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Unsurprisingly, another Red Bull front-row lockout, & Tsunoda's surprising, weekend-specific or not, slowness continued.
The biggest disappointment in qualifying, while Alpine was a positive surprise.
What an error by Sargeant, though.
Sometimes, red-flagging has happened unnecessarily hastily in practice & qualifying sessions but wholly justified this time, as Sainz took forever to get going, & ironically, his off (alongside Gio's 2017 ones & Albon's in 2019) only further proves that Albert Park's T6 isn't the problem for the incidents involving bouncing back on track or stopping on track, as effectively the same has been the case more than once also with Shanghai's last corner.
No 13+14 for the dame, again its Mercedes fault shes where she is, not hers of course....but heh Shit happens, or translated "I couldn't care less", the mark of a true World Champion. A great top ten esp 9th+10th, Nandos gonna need some amazing strategy to beat the Bulls lol
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