It’s qualifying time in Mexico. With a championship battle heating up, Norris, Piastri and Verstappen will want an optimal qualifying session today. Under the blazing Mexican sun, let’s see what happened.
Q1 – Hadjar sets the pace
It’s the Aston Martins who were the first to hit the circuit as the countdown to qualifying hit zero. It became immediately apparent that track limits would pose an issue. Drivers have to breake hard into the first corner after one of the longest start-straights on the calendar. So getting the timing right is crucial.
With the first set of flying laps completed, it was Lando Norris who shot to the top of the table. His teammate and championship rival Oscar Piastri did not have as good of an initial run. In the HAAS car, Ollie Bearman seemed at one with his car, sitting in the top 3 for the majority of Q1.
As the session drew to a close, all 20 cars began to come out of the pit lane to secure themselves in the second session. The racing bulls of Isack Hadjar was the man to beat, sitting at the top when the chequered flag came out. Lewis Hamilton was just 0.003 seconds of his time off 1:16.733. Antonelli managed to get his silver arrow into Q2, pushing Bortoletto into the drop zone.
Eliminated in Q1:
- 16th – Gabriel Bortoletto
- 17th – Alex Albon
- 18th – Pierre Gasly
- 19th – Lance Stroll
- 20th – Franco Colapinto
Q2 – Piastri can’t match Norris
After setting the fastest time in Q1, Hadjar was keen to get going in Q2. Hamilton was also looking quick but came onto the radio to report concerns over tyre temperatures. Norris once again put his McLaren on top by the halfway point of Q2.
Carlos Sainz was the only Williams in Q2 after Albon was eliminated in Q1. The Spaniard will serve a 5-place grid penalty this weekend due to his post-race penalty from COTA. For the majority of the session, Sainz was running in P3, keen to get himself into Q3.
Norris’ early flying time of 1:16.252 was simply untouchable. Finishing 2 tenths ahead of Hamilton in P2, he had a very comfortable session. On the opposite end, his teammate continued to struggle with handling around the circuit. As Q2 ended, he was only good enough for 7th fastest, half a second off Norris.
Eliminated in Q2:
- 11th – Yuki Tsunoda
- 12th – Esteban Ocon
- 13th – Nico Hulkenberg
- 14th – Fernando Alonso
- 15th – Liam Lawson
Q3 – Ferrari Challenge Norris for Pole
Q3 was anything but boring. All 10 drivers were flying around the circuit, trying to get as close to the front row as possible. Charles Leclerc seemed to be hiding something in Q1 and Q2 as he became the first driver to enter the 1:15s and put his Ferrari on provisional pole after the first set of timed laps.
3 minutes left on the clock, and this is where it got tense. Ollie Bearman was the first of the 10 to begin his final flying lap of the day. He is guaranteed a Top 10 start, which will be great for the HAAS team. Just when we thought Charles Leclerc’s lap was unbeatable, Lando Norris had something to say about it.
After an incredible lap from him, a 1:15.586 put the McLaren on pole. Ferrari was flying behind the Brit, with Charles joining him on the front row ahead of his teammate in P3, his best of the season. Verstappen will start tomorrow’s race in P5, and vitally, the championship leader Oscar Piastri will start in P7 after Carlos drops down from P7 to P12 due to his penalty.
Tomorrow is shaping up to be a brilliant championship-changing race. What a qualifying session!