Lando Norris secures pole for the Qatar F1 Sprint, with McLaren slightly ahead of Ferrari as the weekend kicks off in Losail.
After a single session dominated by Charles Leclerc ahead of the McLaren F1 drivers, and under the setting sun of Losail, the Qatar Grand Prix resumes with the Sprint Qualifying, the first key session of the penultimate weekend of the 2024 season.
This three-part session will determine the starting grid for the Sprint, which takes place tomorrow, Saturday, to kick off the day. The main focus will be to see where Ferrari and McLaren will position themselves, as the Sprint offers up to 15 points for a team, while 24 points currently separate them.
It also offers an initial assessment of the teams’ and drivers’ setups, as well as an opportunity to see if the practice session that opened the weekend was well utilized. However, it remains a learning experience for everyone.
Indeed, while the first session took place at dusk, the Sprint Qualifying is held at night, 30 minutes earlier than tomorrow’s qualifying session, but 1.5 hours later than the Sunday race.
The three parts, SQ1, SQ2, and SQ3, follow the same format as the regular qualifying, with 5-minute breaks in between. The first part lasts 12 minutes, the second 10 minutes, and the third 8 minutes. Medium tires are mandatory for SQ1 and SQ2, and soft tires are required in SQ3.
SQ1 – 12 minutes – Medium Tires
Charles Leclerc set the initial benchmark with a time of 1’23″259, with Max Verstappen just behind, 0.032 seconds off the Ferrari. Valtteri Bottas took third, ahead of Carlos Sainz, while the Haas drivers were placed just behind.
Pierre Gasly secured the fifth-fastest time, and Lando Norris moved to the top with a time of 1’22″785. Oscar Piastri finished with the sixth-best time. George Russell was second, 0.026 seconds behind Norris, and Yuki Tsunoda took seventh ahead of Piastri. Lewis Hamilton posted the ninth-fastest time.
Bottas improved to fourth, 0.1 seconds off the pace, while Kevin Magnussen moved ahead of him. Sainz set a personal best with 1’22″261. Leclerc responded immediately with a new best time of 1’22″105 to reclaim the top spot. Liam Lawson ran wide but avoided any major issues.
Verstappen then edged ahead of Norris, and Gasly improved to a time of 1’22″586, securing fourth place. Esteban Ocon moved up to tenth, while Pérez took ninth. Norris then improved again, retaking the lead with a time of 1’22″021.
Piastri moved up to third, just under two-tenths off the leader. Hamilton set the eighth-fastest time, and Russell climbed to second, tying with Norris! Tsunoda made it into the top 10, while Lawson had his time cancelled.
Ocon rose to ninth, and Hülkenberg, provisionally 19th, improved to eighth, just behind Magnussen. Norris improved his time at the top to 1’21″356, while the Aston Martin drivers moved into the top 10. Pérez didn’t improve! Bottas climbed to seventh, Verstappen to fourth, and Tsunoda was only 17th.
The eliminated drivers were Pérez, Tsunoda, Ocon, Zhou, and Colapinto.
SQ2 – 10 minutes – Medium Tires
Disappointment for Pérez, disbelief for Tsunoda: the emotions were intense at the end of SQ1. The drivers now faced 10 minutes in SQ2 to determine the top 10 for the Sprint Qualifying.
Hülkenberg posted a time of 1’22″416, Magnussen was half a second behind, and Verstappen improved to 1’22″188. Sainz placed himself between the Haas drivers, and Leclerc set the fastest time with 1’22″130. Stroll was fifth, ahead of Lawson.
Norris took second, 0.043 seconds behind Leclerc, and 0.015 seconds ahead of Verstappen. Albon placed sixth, ahead of Alonso, while Gasly improved to take the sixth spot. Piastri set a new fastest time with 1’22″050.
Russell and Hamilton opted for two out-laps, while Verstappen went slightly off track on his final run but still posted a time similar to Piastri’s! Sainz went fastest of all with 1’21″809, while Leclerc fell just 0.009 seconds short of his teammate.
Bottas took 12th, and Lawson placed ninth, while Russell moved to the top of the session with a time of 1’21″488. Hamilton couldn’t improve past seventh. Norris, however, made progress and set the fastest time with 1’21″231, while Piastri’s time was cancelled for exceeding track limits.
Piastri moved up to third, and Stroll finished ninth. Alonso slipped ahead of his teammate, and Verstappen climbed to fourth. Piastri expressed concern over possibly damaging his car on the curbs.
Albon moved up to tenth, eliminating Stroll, while Lawson took eighth. Bottas remained 12th, and Magnussen could only manage 15th. Gasly improved to ninth, securing a spot in SQ3.
The eliminated drivers were Alonso, Albon, Bottas, Stroll, and Magnussen.
SQ3 – 8 minutes – Soft Tires
Sainz and Verstappen appeared to hinder each other in the first sector, while the McLaren drivers took to the track later for a single flying lap. Lawson set a time of 1’22″5, and Gasly posted a better time of 1’22″3.
Leclerc set the fastest time with 1’21″705, but Norris beat that with 1’21″012, the fastest time of the weekend. Piastri couldn’t improve but closed the gap to just 0.159 seconds behind his teammate. Verstappen was third, three-tenths off Norris, while Russell improved and placed ahead of him. Hamilton finished fifth.
The McLaren drivers then completed another fast lap. Hülkenberg moved up to seventh, while Norris abandoned his second attempt, as he was behind on time. Piastri finished his lap but failed to improve, remaining two-tenths off his best.
Verstappen couldn’t improve on his first lap, remaining in fourth. Russell did improve, moving between the two McLarens. Lawson ended up seventh, and Sainz took fourth. Leclerc finished fifth, while Gasly secured the eighth-fastest time.
Norris took pole for the F1 Sprint in Qatar, ahead of Russell. Piastri and Sainz will line up on the second row, with Leclerc and Verstappen behind. Hamilton starts seventh, followed by Gasly, Lawson, and Hülkenberg.
2024 F1 Qatar Grand Prix – Sprint Qualifying Standings
| Pos | Driver | Team | SQ1 | SQ2 | SQ3 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | LN | MCL | 1.21.356 | 1.21.231 | 1.21.012 |
| 02 | GR | MER | 1.22.021 | 1.21.488 | 1.21.075 |
| 03 | OP | MCL | 1.22.218 | 1.21.548 | 1.21.171 |
| 04 | CS | FER | 1.21.838 | 1.21.809 | 1.21.281 |
| 05 | CL | FER | 1.22.156 | 1.21.818 | 1.21.308 |
| 06 | MV | RBR | 1.22.033 | 1.21.784 | 1.21.315 |
| 07 | LH | MER | 1.22.151 | 1.21.734 | 1.21.474 |
| 08 | PG | ALP | 1.22.586 | 1.22.352 | 1.21.978 |
| 09 | NH | HAS | 1.22.569 | 1.22.318 | 1.22.088 |
| 10 | LL | RBR | 1.22.705 | 1.22.393 | 1.22.577 |
| 11 | FA | AMR | 1.22.499 | 1.22.433 | – |
| 12 | AA | WIL | 1.22.705 | 1.22.526 | – |
| 13 | VB | SAE | 1.22.506 | 1.22.538 | – |
| 14 | LS | AMR | 1.22.522 | 1.22.599 | – |
| 15 | KM | HAS | 1.22.560 | 1.22.738 | – |
| 16 | SP | RBR | 1.22.718 | – | – |
| 17 | YT | RBR | 1.22.722 | – | – |
| 18 | EO | ALP | 1.22.906 | – | – |
| 19 | GZ | SAE | 1.22.948 | – | – |
| 20 | FC | WIL | 1.23.423 | – | – |
- Discover More>Sainz Set for Early Williams Debut at Yas Marina
- Follow us on >Facebook and >Twitter for F1 updates.
McLaren Edges Ferrari with Norris on Sprint Pole in Qatar McLaren Edges Ferrari with Norris on Sprint Pole in Qatar McLaren Edges Ferrari with Norris on Sprint Pole in Qatar
