Azerbaijan - Qualifying

The weekend in Baku starts off a double-header of street circuits, and gives Oliver Bearman another opportunity to jump behind the wheel of an F1 car. The young Brit will be taking the spot of Kevin Magnussen who had accumulated enough penalty points to be banned from participating in one race. 

The street track already reminded us just how treacherous it could be, as over the three practice sessions multiple drivers found the barriers, and even more took advantage of the run-off area by turn 3. Long before it started, qualifying was sure to be exciting. 

Mercedes opted for a different tire strategy than its competitors, as it was the only team to send their drivers out on mediums for their first run. Of course, over the course of Q1, they switched to softs. The session started with the usual teams on top. Sainz brought out a brief yellow flag as he went deep into a corner, while his teammate was busy putting together a lap that placed him at the top of the leaderboards. Tensions rose as the 18 minutes ticked down. Ocon damaged his rear tire and had to slowly drive back to the pits, without having set a competitive time. Surprisingly, with enough time for only one more lap, Verstappen, Piastri, Sainz, and Norris all found themselves at risk of being eliminated. While the first three managed to put in times good enough for a promotion to Q2, Norris aborted his last attempt because of a yellow flag brought out by Ocon. The man fighting for the championship finished his day much earlier than anyone could have anticipated. Ricciardo, Bottas, Zhou, and Ocon joined him in the elimination zone. 

The Ferraris were the first to set their Q2 times, although they were quickly overtaken by both Red Bulls and later on some of their other competitors. They responded by putting together laps good enough to keep them in the top 5, but not to beat Verstappen who comfortably occupied P1. Piastri stayed close to the two teams. Both rookies impressed in this session. Colapinto achieved a better time than his teammate and finished Q2 in 6th, earning himself an entry into the last session of the day. Bearman also put in a better time than his teammate, and very nearly missed out on Q3, having been kicked into the drop zone by Alonso. Except for him, Tsunoda, Gasly, Hulkenberg, and Stroll finished their day early. 

Leclerc was looking forward to extending his pole streak in Baku. Verstappen wanted to get his first pole since Austria. Piastri was eager to get his first-ever career pole. And only one of them could see their wish come true. After the first runs, it was Leclerc who was on top, although the other drivers weren't too far behind. With 3 minutes to go, all drivers had time for one last lap. A little incident started off the series of push laps as Albon drove out of the pit with his airbox fan still attached to his car. He stopped at the pit exit and managed to get it off, but was noted for unsafe pit release. He will be investigated after the session. 

Everyone tried to reach Leclerc's time but with the Monegasque putting in a lap that only improved upon it, no one was able to. He took his 26th career pole and his 4th pole in a row at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix. His teammate managed to secure a spot on the second row, with Oscar Piastri separating the two Ferraris. Perez and Rusell closed out the top five. Now only one question remains. How will tomorrow's race affect the fight for the championship?

Edit: After the session ended, Pierre Gasly was disqualified, while both Ocon and Hamilton decided to take new engines and start the race from the pitlane.

Order of the grid:

1. Charles Leclerc

2. Oscar Piastri

3. Carlos Sainz

4. Sergio Perez

5. George Russel

6. Max Verstappen

7. Fernando Alonso

8. Franco Colapinto

9. Alex Albon

10. Oliver Bearman

11. Yuki Tsunoda

12. Nico Hulkenberg 

13. Lance Stroll

14. Daniel Ricciardo

15. Lando Norris

16. Valtteri Bottas

17. Zhou Guanyu

18. Pierre Gasly

Pitlane: Esteban Ocon, Lewis Hamilton