Max Verstappen He has won pole position for the Arabian Grand Prix and has already made it two out of two possible, after his performance in the opening test in Bahrain, a week ago. The three-time champion has preceded Leclerc y Pérez, while Fernando Alonso excited his followers with a brilliant performance which has allowed him to get fully into the battle for pole and secure an excellent fourth starting position for this Saturday’s race (6:00 p.m.).
The second classification of the Formula 1 season and also the second held early on Friday, has begun with the notable absence of Carlos Sainz, who this afternoon had a successful operation for appendicitis and hopes to be recovered for the next Australian GP, in two weeks.
His replacement, rookie ‘Ollie’ Bearman, only 18 years old, has had to face a difficult debut on the Jeddah Corniche circuit, one of the fastest and most technical on the calendar, where any mistake is costly. Despite the pressure, he has not failed and has saved his debut with flying colors. Only 36 thousandths have separated him from Q3.
Q1: Sauber’s fruitless effort
Alonso, who yesterday led free practice 2, started at the front (1.28.876) followed by his teammate Stroll, confirming Aston Martin’s good feelings on this track after the discreet debut in Bahrain, where the Asturian was far from the best ( 9th). The track, in better conditions and less wind than the previous day, allowed rapid progress and soon Piastri and Norris beat Fernando’s time, with Bearman and Leclerc in their wake.
Verstappen set a fast-paced first lap to take first (1.28.491), with Leclerc 1 tenth away and Alonso, 2 on his second attempt. Bearman brushed against the wall, but he escaped well and overcame the first cut without problems. Leclerc has lowered his record with soft tires, as has Max (1.28.171).
Stroll has risen to second place, just 79 thousandths behind the three-time champion, with Leclerc, Checo and Alonso completing the ‘top five’ in this first round. The two Alpines of Ocon and Gasly, Bottas, Sargeant and Zhou have been eliminated at the first opportunity. The Chinese, who in FP3 has destroyed the Sauber In a spectacular accident, he was only able to complete two laps. His mechanics have worked around the clock to repair the car, but it still hasn’t been enough.
Q2: Alonso, very competitive
Russell set the first reference (1.28.608) before a breakdown in Nico Hülkenberg’s Haas, stopped in the middle of the track, forced the red flag with 10 minutes remaining.
When the session resumed, Verstappen showed his ‘claws’ with the fastest lap (1.28.078), but Alonso and Leclerc responded. The Spaniard was only 44 thousandths behind, confirming the speed of the AMR24 and the Monegasque made the most of his attempt on soft tires to get within 1 tenth. The McLarens have not been able to beat them. An excellent balance for Fernandowhich in this way has been able to save two sets of tires for the decisive Q3.
Bearman’s adventure has ended here. Hamilton left him out by 36 thousandths and the British rookie fell alongside Albon, Magnussen, Ricciardo and Hülkenberg.
Q3: Pole, for Max
The fight for pole has begun with an unexpected candidate, Alonso, and two clear favorites, Verstappen and Leclerc. The two-time Spanish champion has given wings to Aston Martin in his first attempt, which has left him third behind Pérez’s two Red Bulls and a stratospheric Verstappen (1.27.472). Leclerc needed two laps to get his tires up to temperature and placed fourth in the first round.
The definitive has confirmed that Leclerc and Ferrari are the alternative to Red Bull. Verstappen has not needed to improve his previous record, it has been the fastest in all sectors and has scored the pole without discussion. Leclerc was 3 tenths behind in an exceptional last lap, leaving Checo and Alonso behind, who even took advantage of Hamilton’s slipstream to shave thousandths off the time and tomorrow he will start on the second row.
2024-03-08 18:09:48
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