COTA is a circuit with high speed corners, changing elevations and tricky chicanes. One error can be the difference between P1 and P20, so with track limits being on the minds of the race directors, Sprint Qualifying was never going to be simple.
SQ1 – Traffic chaos ends the session
The Texan sun welcomed the 20 drivers to a scorching hot sprint qualifying today. 32°c making the session a lot more demanding. Isack Hadjar was the first out to set a flying timed lap, followed by Yuki Tsunoda and Nico Hulkenberg, who looked quick during FP1.
Sprint qualifying sessions are shorter than a regular qualifying session, so all teams were pushing with no time to waste. Track limits quickly became an issue for many as Gabriel Bortoletto has his track time deleted, going wide at turn 19. This is a corner that has caught many drivers today.
Yuki Tsunoda had a disaster session, being last in the queue to exit the pit lane, he did not make it to the line to start his flying lap. He was not alone – Bortoletto and Ocon were also too slow to the line. The late launchers created horrible traffic, not only impeding themselves but also others on track.
Eliminated in SQ1:
- 16th – Ollie Bearman
- 17th – Franco Colapinto
- 18th – Yuki Tsunoda
- 19th – Esteban Ocon
- 20th – Gabriel Bortoletto
SQ2 – Tight margins for Ferrari
Max Verstappen was wasting no time getting this second session started, waiting at the end of the pit lane for the green light. With a clear track ahead of him, he flew his way straight to P1, purple initially in all three sectors. His lead was short lived, Norris quickly reclaiming the top spot.
The two Ferrari’s kept fans on the edge of their seats, leaving their flying laps to the last minute. Being pushed into the elimination zone by Hülkenberg, the two drivers needed a lap good enough for the top 10. Charles Leclerc managed a lap good enough for P8 while Hamiltons margins were even slimmer.
As he crossed the line, claimed that last spot in SQ3, knocking out Kimi Antonelli by only 0.006 seconds. Also out in SQ2 was Liam Lawson who ended up having his lap time deleted due to exceeding limits once again at turn 19.
Eliminated in SQ2:
- 11th – Kimi Antonelli
- 12th – Isack Hadjar
- 13th – Pierre Gasly
- 14th – Lance Stroll
- 15th – Liam Lawson
SQ3 – Verstappen on top once again
The shortest qualifying session, an 8 minute shoot out between the 10 fastest drivers of the day. 50 seconds left of the session and only 3 drivers had set an a initial lap. George Russell and both Williams finished qualifying in the pit lane.
McLaren looked as if they would have the top row locked out for the sprint race but this was denied by Verstappen, 0.071 seconds the difference. Norris will join Max on the front row, with Piastri only quick enough for P3.
Ferrari once again couldn’t not find their desired pace, qualifying P8 and P10, with Hamilton being the lead Ferrari once again. Much to the delight of Sauber, Hülkenberg will start the sprint race on the second row, going 4th fastest today.
It’s no secret that P2 can be a more advantageous position at COTA leading up to turn 1, so it will be exciting to see tomorrow if Max can hold onto the lead or if Lando will be able to snatch it from him.