Max Verstappen took crucial F1 pole in Abu Dhabi GP to keep his chances alive ahead of Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri.
Here’s George Russell topping FP3 in F1 Abu Dhabi GP: https://www.formula1.com/en/latest/article/fp3-russell-beats-norris-to-top-spot-as-hamilton-crashes-out-of-final.1fMYa4jAx3kDdeJFVdOwub
Q1:
The first part of F1 Abu Dhabi GP qualifying at Yas Marina circuit under the floodlight saw the Ferrari pair of Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc opting for the medium tyre along with Alpine’s Pierre Gasly. The Brit had his car repaired after FP3 shunt and he felt good in the first run.
There was lap deletions straight up for Alpine’s Franco Colapinto and Aston Martin’s Lance Stroll. The Argentine had another of his time deleted and he was joined by teammate Pierre Gasly in the list too. The field was covered by 0.863s margin from P1 to P19 in the end.
McLaren’s Oscar Piastri ended up on top with a 1m22.605s ahead of Red Bull’s Max Verstappen and Mercedes’ Andrea Kimi Antonelli in the Top 3. It was a close save for Red Bull’s Yuki Tsunoda in 15th as Hamilton lost out by just 0.008s margin in 16th after his 1m23.394s lap.
He had Williams’ Alexander Albon (1m23.416s) in the knockout zone in 17th ahead of Sauber’s Nico Hulkenberg (1m23.450s) and Alpine pair of Gasly (1m23.468s) and Colapinto (1m23.890s). Replays showed that Hamilton had a wide moment in the final sector to lose out.
Q2:
The second part in F1 Abu Dhabi GP qualifying saw an early run for Verstappen on a used soft tyre set. In fact, he did two runs on the old set after a pit run between two laps. On the other end, McLaren’s Lando Norris waited for long to undertake his first run of the session.
At the front, it was Mercedes’ George Russell on top with a 1m22.730s lap ahead of Verstappen and Norris in the Top 3, as Haas’ Oliver Bearman was the big drop in 11th – missing out by 0.007s margin after his 1m23.041s lap, with Williams’ Carlos Sainz (1m23.042s) only 0.001s behind.
The two looked likely to be in the Top 10 but ended up 11th and 12th, with Visa Cash App RB’s Liam Lawson (1m23.044s) in 13th, Antonelli (1m23.080s) 14th and Stroll (1m23.097s) in 15th. The whole field from P1 to P15 was covered by just the 0.367s margin – under half a second.
Q3:
The final part in F1 Abu Dhabi GP qualifying saw slipstream help from Red Bull’s Yuki Tsunoda to set a 1m22.295s lap for Verstappen in the first run. He comfortably led McLaren pair of Piastri (1m22.622s) and Norris (1m22.751s) in the Top 3, as Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc (1m22.794s) was fourth.
The Top 5 was rounded out by Russell (1m22.868s) after a save from the Brit. The Mercedes driver wanted to use Verstappen on his second run to secure a tow which he managed to by going out behind him. It was all Verstappen show in the end after a 1m22.207s lap.
He took final F1 pole in Abu Dhabi GP from Norris (1m22.408s) and Piastri (1m22.437s) in the Top 3, with the title contenders to go up against each other in the grand prix. Russell (1m22.645s) was fourth despite a hairy moment in the final corner in the final run behind Verstappen.
Leclerc (1m22.730s) was fifth from Aston Martin’s Fernando Alonso (1m22.902s), with Sauber’s Gabriel Bortoleto (1m22.904s) only 0.002s behind in seventh. Haas’ Esteban Ocon (1m22.913s) was eighth from Visa Cash App RB’s Isack Hadjar (1m23.072s), with no lap from Tsunoda – everyone from P1 to P9 was covered by 0.865s).
