Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc charges to pole in Azerbaijan
- Damian Hall
- Sep 14, 2024
- 2 min read
Updated: Sep 21, 2024
14th September 2024
Baku bites as Lando Norris is eliminated in Q1 and Sir Lewis Hamilton to fight from seventh
Charles Leclerc secured his fourth consecutive pole position on the streets of Baku, marking the 26th pole of his Formula 1 career, reports Damian Hall.
The Ferrari driver overcame early weekend setbacks to deliver a stunning lap in qualifying, finishing three-tenths faster than the rest of the field with a time of 1:41.365.
“It hasn’t been an easy weekend because of the crash in FP1, but it didn’t make me lose confidence,” Leclerc said after qualifying. “I knew the pace was there, but obviously you have to build back up to speed. Then in FP2, we had a problem with a new part on the car, which cost us another half-hour of running. These are laps you don’t really recover [from].”
Despite these early issues, Leclerc pulled it together when it mattered most, setting a blistering lap in Q3. He expressed satisfaction with his performance and the team’s efforts, especially with teammate Carlos Sainz qualifying third.
“It’s one of my favourite tracks, and the car felt really good,” Leclerc said. “It’s amazing to be on pole. First and third is where you want to start, so hopefully tomorrow we can play a team game. Tyre management will be a big factor, and we’ll do our homework tonight to be ready for the race.”
Carlos Sainz echoed his teammate’s confidence, describing today’s qualifiers as “solid”.
He added: “We had a solid quali, a solid day. I think we’ve put ourselves in a good position for tomorrow.”
McLaren’s Oscar Piastri will join Leclerc on the front row after a strong performance in qualifying, securing second place on the grid. Piastri outqualified his teammate Lando Norris, who was eliminated in Q1.
Despite the fate of his teammate, Piastri said he was pleased with his Q3 performance.
“This track really rewards commitment. In the last laps of Q3, I knew I had a lot less to lose, so I just tried to maximise. The car felt good all the way through. I didn’t get the most out of the first part of qualifying, but I’m really happy with Q3.”
Meanwhile, Norris’ qualifying session was cut short by a brief yellow flag that disrupted his final run, leaving him unable to set a competitive lap earlier. He faces a tough task starting from the back of the grid on race day.
Red Bull’s Sergio Perez will start fourth, outqualifying his teammate and current championship leader Max Verstappen, who could only manage sixth. Perez’s strong performance adds an extra layer of excitement to the race, with Red Bull facing stiff competition from Ferrari.
Mercedes’ George Russell starts fifth, while his teammate Sir Lewis Hamilton will be fighting his way forward from seventh on the grid.
Hamilton said he was disappointed with his qualifying, noting a sudden drop in tyre performance. “Yesterday the car felt amazing. I think we could have been on the second row today, but today, all of a sudden, the tyres just didn’t work.”
With a tightly packed grid and Baku’s unpredictable nature, tomorrow’s race promises to be a thrilling battle for the win.
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