After a Sprint earlier in the day, it was time for the drivers to put everything on the line in order to Qualify as high as possible for tomorrow’s Qatar Grand Prix!
Q1
In Qualifying 1; Alex Albon, Liam Lawson, Nico Hulkenberg, Franco Colapinto, and Esteban Ocon were the five slowest drivers! Alex Albon showcased that there really isn’t a lot of pace in the Williams, but he did manage to beat Liam Lawson who was frustrated to be knocked out so early! Nico Hulkenberg had a bit of a shocker to get knocked out in Q1, ahead of Franco Colapinto who continues to struggle in the other Williams whilst Esteban Ocon’s horrible Qualifying run continued, the Frenchman nearly 9 tenths slower than his Alpine teammate! It was George Russell who topped Q1 for Mercedes, just narrowly ahead of Charles Leclerc’s Ferrari!
Q2
In Qualifying 2; Pierre Gasly, Zhou Guanyu, Valtteri Bottas, Yuki Tsunoda, and Lance Stroll all failed to make it into the Top 10 shootout! Pierre Gasly was very frustrated at missing out on a spot in Q3 by just 12 thousandths of a second whilst Zhou Guanyu put in a great lap to take 12th! Valtteri Bottas was 13th in what was Kick Sauber’s best result for some time, ahead of the Visa Cash App RB of Yuki Tsunoda whilst Lance Stroll had a scruffy final lap that saw him end up slowest in the session! It was Max Verstappen who topped Q2, nearly 3 tenths clear of Lando Norris!
Q3
In Qualifying 3, a sensational 1:20.520 was enough for Max Verstappen to take a brilliant Pole Position! Given how his weekend has gone so far, for Max to pull out this sort of performance is pretty extraordinary (even if he might end up getting a penalty)! George Russell once again finds himself on the Front Row, just 55 thousandths off Pole whilst it’s an all-McLaren Second Row with Lando Norris ahead of Oscar Piastri! Charles Leclerc will start 5th for Ferrari, ahead of Lewis Hamilton whilst Carlos Sainz will start 7th after a frustrating afternoon! Fernando Alonso did a terrific job to get P8 for Aston Martin, ahead of Sergio Perez (who was some 9 tenths slower than his teammate) whilst Kevin Magnussen scored his second P10 finish of the day!
Starting Grid for the 2024 Qatar Grand Prix and My Qualifying Grades
Max Verstappen: 10
George Russell: 9
Lando Norris: 8
Oscar Piastri: 7
Charles Leclerc: 7
Lewis Hamilton: 5
Carlos Sainz: 5
Fernando Alonso: 9
Sergio Perez: 4
Kevin Magnussen: 8
Pierre Gasly: 7
Zhou Guanyu: 8
Valtteri Bottas: 7
Yuki Tsunoda: 5
Lance Stroll: 3
Alex Albon: 3
Liam Lawson: 2
Nico Hulkenberg: 1
Franco Colapinto: 1
Esteban Ocon: 1
Credit: F1
My Predictions for the 2024 Qatar Grand Prix
George Russell
Lando Norris
Max Verstappen
Oscar Piastri
Charles Leclerc
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