After the sprint finish at the Chinese Grand Prix, there was a sense of surprise in the air, but McLaren, who were announced as the favorites before the start of the season, ensured that this was not the case.
Q1 brought a veritable carnival of color, as, with a bit of exaggeration, the entire field reversed course in the top three. McLaren led, followed by Red Bull Racing, Racing Bulls, and finally Lando Norris, Isaac Hadjar, and Yuki Tsunoda finished this stage in first place. Pierre Gasly, Ollie Bearman, Jack Doohan, Gabriel Bortoleto, and Liam Lawson were not so lucky, nor so fast, and said goodbye to the upcoming battles. The latter driver had disappointing performances, and his boss gave him only one piece of advice before qualifying: avoid social media...
In Q2, things unfolded in a similar fashion to the previous phase. After a brief battle between Mercedes, McLaren quickly took the lead and didn't relinquish it. Once again, Lando Norris was the fastest ahead of Max Verstappen and Oscar Piastri, while the eliminated drivers included Esteban Ocon, Nico Hulkenberg, Carlos Sainz, and both Aston Martins were noted.
After the first few fast laps of Q3, we saw the same picture again: the two McLarens in the lead, closely followed by Verstappen. At this point, it was almost certain that the orange team would take pole position, the only question being which driver and car would do it. In the end, Oscar Piastri managed to cross the line first, ahead of George Russell and Lando Norris. It was an extremely close finish; let's hope these emotions carry over into tomorrow's Chinese Grand Prix!
Photo: Motorsportweek / PlanetF1
