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Author: Darshan Chokhani
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MotoGP: Marquez secures Japanese GP as title rivals suffer
Marc Marquez took MotoGP pole upon his return in Japanese GP in wet conditions with Johann Zarco second and Brad Binder third.
Q1:
The first part of MotoGP qualifying in Japanese GP at Twin Ring Motegi was delayed due to track conditions after wet weather situation. The FP3 session was cancelled with the organisers focusing on qualifying rather than the practice session.
The track was quite wet still at the time of the first part in qualifying as LCR Honda’s Takaaki Nakagami had a minor crash early in the session. He managed to continue on, with RNF Yamaha’s Darryn Binder crashing out later but he continued on as well.
With no pit stops due to the weather conditions, the Pramac Ducati pair led the way from mid-way in the session. It was Johann Zarco who with a 1m55.300s lap made it into Q2 from teammate Jorge Martin as VR46’s Ducati’s Marco Bezzecchi missed out in third.
He is to start from 13th from Yamaha’s Franco Morbidelli, as MotoGP title contender Enea Bastianini did not have a good run to be 15th. The Italian had a late crash which further hurt his chances, with teammate Fabio di Giannantonio in 16th.
LCR’s Alex Marquez was 17th from Suzuki’s Alex Rins from Honda wildcard Tetsuta Nagashima who did well to be inside Top 20, where Tech 3 KTM’s Remy Gardner was 20th. Suzuki wildcard Takuya Tsuda also did well to be 21st.
He was followed by Tech 3’s Raul Fernandez, whose session also ended with a crash. RNF’s Cal Crutchlow was 23rd from teammate Binder as LCR’s Nakagami was 25th.
Q2:
The second part in MotoGP qualifying in Japanese GP saw Honda’s Marc Marquz set the pace in wet conditions with no stops in between for the riders. Ducati’s Francesco Bagnaia had a wild moment on one of his laps as KTM’s Miguel Oliveira had a crash.
He continued on, as Marquez continued to set the pace. The Spaniard eventually took MotoGP pole upon his return in Japanese GP with a 1m55.214s lap with Pramac’s Zarco doing well in Q2 after topping Q1 to be second from KTM’s Brad Binder.
The South African snatched the front row from Aprilia’s Maverick Vinales after a late lap, with Martin also doing well to be fifth from Q2. Aprilia’s Aleix Espargaro was sixth – the lead rider among the MotoGP title contenders – with Ducati’s Jack Miller in seventh.
KTM’s Oliveira ending eighth from Yamaha’s Fabio Quartararo, who only managed ninth as his MotoGP title rival Bagnaia was 12th behind VR46’s Luca Marini and Honda’s Pol Espargaro in 10th and 11th.
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FIA reveals provisional 2023 F1 calendar with 24 races
The FIA has released a 24-race provisional calendar for 2023 F1 season which starts in Bahrain and ends in Abu Dhabi.
A record breaking 24-race provisional calendar for 2023 F1 season has been released by the FIA after an approval from World Motor Sport Council. The season will kick-off early on March 5 with the Bahrain GP, while end on November 26 with the Abu Dhabi GP.
The opener won’t be a back-to-back with Saudi Arabian GP which will take place on March 19, alongwith Australian GP on April 2. The Chinese GP is to return on April 16 as the Azerbaijan GP is brought forward to April 30 date.
The Miami GP is once again in May on 7th, with the Emilia Romagna GP on May 21 followed by Monaco GP on May 28. The Spanish GP has been moved to a June 4 date with the Canadian GP on June 18, followed by the Austrian GP on July 2.
It will be back-to-back with British GP on July 9, as Hungarian GP falls on July 23 with the Belgian GP taking place before the summer break on July 30. The F1 circus will return from the break with the Dutch GP on August 27, followed by Italian GP on September 3.
They will then move on for the Singapore GP on September 17, with the Japanese GP on September 24. The returning Qatar GP is on October 8, while the US GP is on October 22 being clubbed with the Mexico GP on October 29.
The Brazilian GP is also part of the trio on November 5, with the new-for Las Vegas GP on November 18 followed by the finale on November 26 with the Abu Dhabi GP. “The presence of 24 races on the 2023 FIA Formula One World Championship calendar is further evidence of the growth and appeal of the sport on a global scale,” said FIA President Mohammed Ben Sulayem.
“The addition of new venues and the retention of traditional events underlines the FIA’s sound stewardship of the sport. I am delighted that we will be able to take Formula 1’s new era of exciting racing, created by the FIA’s 2022 Regulations, to a broader fan base in 2023. In framing the 2023 F1 calendar, WMSC Members have also been mindful of the timing of the prestigious 24 Hours of Le Mans.”
Here’s the FIA F1 calendar for 2023:
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MotoGP: Bastianini beats Bagnaia on last lap to win Aragon GP
Enea Bastianini passed Francesco Bagnaia on the final lap to win MotoGP race in Aragon GP, as Aleix Espargaro was third.
Pole-sitter Francesco Bagnaia made a good start on his Ducati to lead the MotoGP Aragon GP as KTM’s Brad Binder made up places to be second from the other Ducati of Jack Miller and Gresini Ducati’s Enea Bastianini in the Top 4 positions.
Aprilia’s Aleix Espargaro was steady in fifth from fast-starter Pramac Ducati’s Jorge Martin with teammate Johann Zarco behind him in seventh. The other KTM of Miguel Oliveira was eighth from VR46 Ducati pair of Luca Marini and Marco Bezzecchi.
Up ahead, MotoGP points leader had the worst start when he crashed out halfway into the first lap. A moment from Honda’s Marc Marquez on the exit of right-hander caught out Yamaha’s Fabio Quartararo, whose bike fell on him after a highside.
Quartararo retired immediately as Marquez struggled to hold on with damage on the rear of his Honda. He collected LCR Honda’s Takaaki Nakagami in the process where other MotoGP riders had to avoid the Japanese rider, with Pol Espargaro almost crashing out too.
Both Nakagami and Marquez retired as Bagnaia continued to lead the MotoGP Aragon GP. Behind him, Bastianini was the rider on charge after he passed both Miller and Binder to move up to second, with the Australian losing out to Espargaro too.
He was down to fifth from a steady Martin, Zarco, Oliveira and Marini, as Bezzecchi dropped to 11th from LCR’s Alex Marquez in 10th. RNF Yamaha’s Cal Crutchlow was 12th from Suzuki’s Alex Rins, Tech 3 KTM’s Remy Gardner and Honda’s Espargaro in the Top 15.
Up front, Bastianini started to pressure Bagnaia and passed him at Turn 1 to lead MotoGP Aragon GP. However, he went wide at Turn 12 allowing the Italian to retake the lead, with Binder and Espargaro then closing in on the Gresini rider in the fight for second.
It started to settle down at the front with Bagnaia leading well from Bastianini, but the latter started to trouble him a bit towards the end of the grand prix. The latter eventually made it stick on the final at Turn 7 after laps of putting pressure.
He took the inside line to lead and eventually win the MotoGP race in Aragon GP as Bagnaia had to settle for second by 0.042s and now 10 points behind Quartararo. Espargaro gained in on the Frenchman after passing Binder with few laps to go in third.
Binder fended off Miller to retain fourth, with Martin in sixth from Marini who passed both Oliveira and Zarco in a solid charge. The Frenchman was eighth from Rins who climbed up the order too, with Bezzecchi rounding out the Top 10.
Oliveira fell to 11th from Marquez, as Aprilia’s Maverick Vinales was 13th from Crutchlow and Espargaro in the Top 15 points position. Tech 3’s Gardner ended up outside points in 16th from Yamaha’s Franco Morbidelli, RNF’s Darryn Binder, Gresini’s Fabio di Giannantonio and Tech 3’s Raul Fernandez.
With only five races remaining, Ducati clinched the MotoGP constructors’ championship in Aragon GP, which is their third in a row.
DNF: Marquez, Nakagami, Quartararo.
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MotoGP: Bagnaia secures Aragon GP pole from Miller, Bastianini
It was Ducati 1-2-3 finish as Francesco Bagnaia took MotoGP pole in Aragon GP from Jack Miller and Enea Bastianini.
Q1:
The first part in MotoGP qualifying in Aragon GP saw Honda’s Marc Marquez led the way with a 1m46.909s at the halfway mark from Aprilia’s Aleix Espargaro, who had multiple incidents early on – one of which was put under investigation.
The first one was with Marquez where the two waited for each other to get a tow, while the other was when Espargaro went wide and re-joined as Gresini Ducati’s Fabio di Giannantonio arrived at the scene in the left-hand corner.
Behind the Top 2, VR46 Ducati’s Luca Marini was hot on heels in third from di Giannantonio and Pramac Ducati’s Johann Zarco. The second run started with a disaster for Aprilia’s Maverick Vinales, who crashed out leaving him with little time to return.
His teammate Espargaro set the pace with a 1m46.569s lap to make it into Q2 along with Zarco in second, as Marquez ended up third to start his MotoGP return from 13th. Marini was 14th with di Giannantonio in 15th from Vinales, whose lap hung on.
LCR Honda’s Alex Marquez was 17th from Honda’s Pol Espargaro who had a late crash. The returning Cal Crutchlow was 19th in his RNF Yamaha, with Yamaha’s Franco Morbidelli 20th, Tech 3 KTM pair Raul Fernandez & Remy Gardner in 21st & 22nd and RNF’s Darryn Binder in 23rd, as Suzuki’s Joan Mir pulled out of the weekend due to consistent pain.
Q2:
The second part in MotoGP qualifying in Aragon GP saw Gresini’s Enea Bastianini set the pace with a 1m46.580s lap to lead the way by nearly half a second from Ducati’s Francesco Bagnaia, while Jack Miller slotted in third to complete the front row.
KTM’s Brad Binder did well in fourth from Suzuki’s Alex Rins, as Yamaha’s Fabio Quartararo was only seventh after his first run. While others pitted, Aprilia’s Espargaro went out of sequence for his final run when no one was on track at Aragon.
The second run from Bagnaia was on pace to take MotoGP pole in Aragon GP with a 1m46.069s lap to lead Ducati teammate Miller, as Bastianini dropped to third despite mini improvement. Espargaro slotted in fourth after his out of sequence run.
Zarco was fifth from Quartararo, who survived a crash scare while looking for that extra lap time. VR46’s Marco Bezzecchi was seventh from Pramac’s Jorge Martin. lone Suzuki of Rins, the KTM pair of Binder & Miguel Oliveira and LCR’s Takaaki Nakagami in Top 12.
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Italian GP: Verstappen beats Leclerc as he inches closer to 2022 title
Max Verstappen climbed up from seventh to win F1 Italian GP with Charles Leclerc in second from George Russell.
It was a clean getaway in F1 Italian GP at Monza from Charles Leclerc in his Ferrari from Mercedes’ George Russell, who had to take avoiding action at Turn 1. Red Bull’s Max Verstappen moved up to third from seventh by the end of Lap 1.
McLaren’s Daniel Ricciardo was fourth from AlphaTauri’s Pierre Gasly, with McLaren’s Lando Norris in sixth after a slow start. Alpine’s Fernando Alonso slotted in seventh from Williams’ Nyck de Vries, Alfa Romeo’s Zhou Guanyu and Aston Martin’s Lance Stroll in the Top 10.
Outside the points, Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz and Red Bull’s Sergio Perez started to climb up the order but Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton was kinda stuck. Among the three, the Spaniard was the man on charge as he was up in the Top 5 in no time.
Perez was following him but he pitted early with front-right brakes issues with the Mexican dropping to last. Aston Martin’s Sebastian Vettel, meanwhile, slowed to retire after power unit issue with the Virtual Safety Car deployed.
Ferrari called Leclerc early and returned third with Verstappen leading from Russell. Behind the Monegasque was Sainz who cleared Ricciardo on re-start. The Australian came under pressure from Gasly too where the Frenchman passed him at Turn 1.
But since he went off, he gave back the place, while Alonso cleared Norris for sixth. The Brit came back on him to retake the place as Ricciardo and Gasly pitted where the Australian kept track position over the Frenchman.
At the front, Ferrari switched Leclerc to a two-stop after Verstappen extended his first stint and took the F1 Italian GP lead from the Monegasque, who had to recover a lot after his second stop. Russell slotted in third on the hard tyres from Sainz.
Perez was fifth from Ricciardo as Hamilton passed Gasly and Norris at one go to be seventh. The McLaren driver pitted late and a slow stop cost him track position but he got through his teammate to be seventh behind Hamilton in the order.
Ricciardo was eighth from Gasly, as de Vries hung on the final points place handsomely. The Dutchman had Guanyu on his tail as the two got to fight for points after retirement for Alonso and also Stroll earlier in the grand prix.
While it looked like the end would be smooth but a late safety car for Ricciardo changed a bit after the Australian faced power unit issue. The front-runners pitted with Verstappen leading from Leclerc, Russell, Sainz and Hamilton in the Top 5.
Perez was sixth from Norris with Gasly, de Vries and Guanyu in the Top 10. With the delay in recovering the car, the F1 Italian GP ended under the safety car with Verstappen winning from Leclerc, Russell, Sainz, Hamilton, Perez, Norris, Gasly, de Vries and Guanyu.
Outside the points, Alpine’s Esteban Ocon was 11th from Haas’ Mick Schumacher, Bottas, AlphaTauri’s Yuki Tsunoda, Williams’ Nicholas Latifi and Haas’ Kevin Magnussen.
DNF: Ricciardo, Stroll, Alonso, Vettel
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Italian GP: Leclerc secures pole from Verstappen amid host of penalties
Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc took F1 Italian GP pole at Monza with Carlos Sainz in third behind Red Bull’s Max Verstappen.
Q1:
The first part in F1 qualifying in Italian GP at Monza saw Ferrari practice tow where Charles Leclerc was aided by Carlos Sainz to lead the way after setting a 1m21.280s lap with the two separated by just the 0.068s gap.
But Red Bull’s Max Verstappen did another lap to faster with a 1m20.922s lap ahead of Leclerc and Sainz. Amid lap deletions, both the Aston Martin and Haas drivers were knocked out as replays showed big moment for Mick Schumacher at Turn 1.
Williams’ Nicholas Latifi (1m22.587s) was knocked out in 16th after a moment at Turn 1 on his fast lap as new teammate Nyck de Vries made it in despite his fast lap getting deleted. Aston Martin’s Sebastian Vettel (1m22.636s) was 17th from Lance Stroll (1m22.748s).
The last row of the grid had the Haas pair with Kevin Magnussen (1m22.908s) in 19th from Schumacher (1m23.005s), where the Dane’s quick lap was also deleted. It didn’t matter though as he was already set to be knocked out.
Q2:
The second part in F1 qualifying at Monza saw Ferrari’s Sainz set strong pace to start the session with a 1m20.878s lap as teammate Leclerc was second after going around the second time. His initial lap was ruined by a moment at Turn 1.
Red Bull’s Verstappen was third as AlphaTauri decided to end Yuki Tsunoda’s session early, with the Japanese driver not venturing out to set a lap. The final quick lap for Williams’ de Vries got destroyed at Turn 4 when he went off to take recovery action.
Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton too had a slight gravel moment in the corner. Alpine’s Esteban Ocon (1m22.130s) was knocked out in 11th after helping his teammate, with Alfa Romeo’s Valtteri Bottas (1m22.235s) in 12th from de Vries (1m22.71s) and Alfa Romeo’s Zhou Guanyu (1m22.577s).
Q3:
The third part in F1 qualifying in Italian GP saw Ferrari pair lead he way provisionally, with Sainz on top after setting a 1m20.584s lap. Leclerc rightly slotted in second from the Red Bull pair of Verstappen and Perez, with Mercedes’ George Russell in fifth.
Lack of grip for Alpine’s Fernando Alonso forced him to abort his first quick lap where they decided to run in the gap. The final run saw Ferrari’s Leclerc improve to a 1m20.161s lap to take F1 Italian GP pole at the team’s home event at Monza.
Verstappen (1m20.306s) ended up second from Sainz (1m20.429s), Perez (1m21.206s) and Hamilton (1m21.524s) but all of them have penalties. Mercedes’ George Russell (1m21.542s) in sixth will end up second for the Sunday’s race.
McLaren’s Lando Norris (1m21.584s) ended up seventh. He led teammate Daniel Ricciardo (1m21.925s) in eighth, while AlphaTauri’s Pierre Gasly (1m22648s) ninth and Alpine’s Fernando Alonso 10th, where the latter couldn’t set a lap time at all.
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Italian GP: Verstappen back on top in FP3 from Leclerc
Red Bull bounced back to lead FP3 session in F1 Italian GP with Sergio Perez slotting in third behind Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc.
It was a bounce back from Red Bull in FP3 session of F1 Italian GP after Verstappen set the pace with a 1m21.252s lap as teammate Perez (1m21.848s) also did well in third in his recovery run behind Ferrari’s Leclerc (1m21.599s).
The other Ferrari of Carlos Sainz (1m21.897s) was fourth as he is under investigation for impeding against Alfa Romeo’s Valtteri Bottas. The Monegasque noted of trouble at Turn 6 when discussing with his team about improving his lap time.
The mix behind had three different teams closely packed together, with Alpine’s Fernando Alonso (1m22.306s) in fifth from McLaren’s Lando Norris (1m22.319s) and Mercedes’ George Russell (1m22.357s). A late lap from AlphaTauri’s Yuki Tsunoda (1m22.430s) put him in eighth.
The other Alpine of Esteban Ocon (1m22.506s) was pushed to ninth from Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton (1m22.567s) as Alfa Romeo’s Zhou Guanyu dropped outside Top 10 where the Swiss outfit continued its fine run in F1 Italian GP practice thus far.
AlphaTauri’s Pierre Gasly was 12th from the Williams pair of Nicholas Latifi and Nyck de Vries, with the Dutchman replacing Alexander Albon who is undergoing appendicitis operation. He had a decent session but it included a gravel moment too.
McLaren’s Daniel Ricciardo was a lowly 15th along with Alfa Romeo’s Bottas, as Aston Martin’s Sebastian Vettel was 17th from Haas pair of Kevin Magnussen and Mick Schumacher, where the German managed just the eight laps.
Prior to the session, Haas found a clutch issue which took them time to fix and they managed to in the end, to give Schumacher some lap time. The 20 runners were rounded out by Aston Martin’s Lance Stroll.
In terms of the power unit elements, Sainz, Ocon and Magnussen joined others to take their fifth ICE and hit themselves with a grid penalty. Additionally, Sainz and Magnussen took their fifth TC, MGU-H, whereas Sainz took his sixth MGU-K.
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Italian GP: Sainz keeps Ferrari on top in FP2 from Verstappen
Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz ended up fastest in FP1 of F1 Italian GP with teammate Charles Leclerc in third behind Red Bull’s Max Verstappen.
The FP2 session was smoothly run too in F1 Italian GP at Monza but with one red flag stoppage to recover the stricken car of Haas’ Mick Schumacher. The engine cut off for the German who was already down on laps after missing FP1 for Antonio Giovinazzi.
He also had a Turn 1 moment early in the session along with Sainz and Verstappen. The Spaniard headed the FP2 standings with a 1m21.664s after he set his best lap post the red flag stoppage, with teammate Leclerc (1m21.857s) in third who had Turn 1 off too.
Sainz took his fourth CE to go with his fifth MGU-K and third ES. Verstappen (1m21.807s) slotted in between the two Ferrari drivers, with McLaren’s Lando Norris (1m22.338s) doing a good job to be fourth from Mercedes’ George Russell (1m22.386s).
Red Bull’s Sergio Perez (1m22.394s) was sixth from Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton (1m22.503s), with both the Mercedes cars suffering ERS deployment. The Alpine pair were eighth and ninth, with Esteban Ocon (1m22.728s) ahead of Fernando Alonso again (1m22.752s).
The Top 10 was rounded by Williams’ Alexander Albon (1m22.835s), who had a heavy gravel moment towards the end of the session. McLaren’s Daniel Ricciardo was 11th from the Alfa Romeo pair of Zhou Guanyu and Valtteri Bottas in 12th and 13th.
The Finn twice had gravel moment, with the AlphaTauri pair in 14th and 15th where Pierre Gasly ahead of Yuki Tsunoda where the latter set his best time on the medium tyres. The Japanese is to see the stewards for failing to slow for yellow flag.
Haas’ Kevin Magnussen was 16th from the Aston Martin pair as Sebastian Vettel returned to the cockpit to be 17th and ahead of Lance Stroll. Williams’ Nicholas Latifi slotted in 19th as Schumacher rounded the 20 runners.
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Italian GP: Leclerc leads Sainz by 0.077s in FP1 as several set for penalty
Ferrari ended up 1-2 to start the F1 Italian GP weekend with Charles Leclerc ahead of Carlos Sainz, as Mercedes’ George Russell was third.
It was a relatively smooth FP1 session in F1 Italian GP at Monza as Ferrari ended up 1-1 where Leclerc (1m22.410s) was faster than Sainz (1m22.487s) by 0.077s. The two led the Mercedes pair where Russell (1m22.689s) was third from Lewis Hamilton (1m22.831s).
Replays showed a moment between Russell and Sainz where the Brit almost crashed into the back of the Spaniard at Turn 5 chicane. Red Bull’s Max Verstappen (1m22.840d) slotted in fifth where he also had a racey moment with McLaren’s Lando Norris in the middle of the session.
The Dutchman couldn’t set a better pace as his team continued to work on his rear wing. The Alpine pair of Esteban Ocon (1m23.075s) and Fernando Alonso (1m23.099s) were sixth and seventh, with AlphaTauri’s Yuki Tsunoda (1m23.260s) eighth from Alfa Romeo’s Valtteri Bottas (1m23.394s).
McLaren’s Daniel Ricciardo (1m23.511s) rounded the Top 10 where the Australian managed to beat teammate Norris, who was only 16th. Williams’ Alexander Albon continued his good run in 11th from Alfa Romeo’s Zhou Guanyu.
AlphaTauri’s Pierre Gasly was 13th after a Turn 1 moment early in the session, with Red Bull’s Sergio Perez unable to set a good lap in 14th from Aston Martin’s Lance Stroll. As noted, Norris was 16th from the Haas pair in 17th and 18th.
It was Kevin Magnussen ahead of Antonio Giovinazzi, who got a FP1 chance in place of Mick Schumacher but it wasn’t part of the young drivers’ session. Nyck de Vries for Aston Martin was part of it in 19th, having replaced Sebastian Vettel.
This was the Dutchman’s third FP1 chance after Williams and Mercedes. He was on-course for a better lap with five minutes remaining, but for a slight off on the gravel which hampered his run, as Williams’ Nicholas Latifi ended up 10th.
The power unit penalty list from the FIA was also revealed during the FP1 session of F1 Italian GP, with the likes of Bottas and Tsunoda going for their sixth ICE of the 2022 season, Verstappen on his fifth and Hamilton and Perez on their fourth.
In terms of TC and MGU-H, Bottas took his seventh, Tsunoda sixth and Hamilton his fourth to incur penalty. On the MGU-K side, Tsunoda took his sixth, Sainz his fifth and Hamilton his fourth, while the Spaniard took his third ES of the season.
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Dutch GP: Verstappen beats Leclerc by 0.021s to take home pole
Red Bull’s Max Verstappen edges out Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc by 0.021s to take F1 Dutch GP pole with Carlos Sainz third.
Q1:
The first part of F1 qualifying in Dutch GP at Zandvoort saw Red Bull’s Max Verstappen lead the pack with a 1m11.317s lap with a safe distance to Ferrari pair where Mercedes’ George Russell and Lewis Hamilton got in to be second and third initially.
But Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc put in another quick lap to be second and close to Verstappen, with Russell retaining third. But late rumble saw the Dutchman still remain on top as Hamilton improved to second from AlphaTauri’s Yuki Tsunoda.
The late improvements put Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz in danger in 14th, as Alfa Romeo’s Zhou Guanyu was the first to be knocked out in 16th with 1m11.961s lap as Haas’ Kevin Magnussen (1m12.041s) was 17th after a moment on his quick lap.
McLaren’s Daniel Ricciardo (1m12.081s) also lost in the final sector to be only 18th as Aston Martin’s Sebastian Vettel (1m12.391s) was sadly 19th after his wide moment on what looked like a fast lap. Williams’ Nicholas Latifi (1m13.353s) ended up 20th.
Q2:
The second part in F1 qualifying at Dutch GP saw red flag to start it off after a fan threw a flare on track. He was removed by the organisers as the session resumed post that. The initial run had Verstappen on top with a 1m10.927s lap.
He headed Hamilton and Red Bull’ Sergio Perez in third, with the Ferrari pair far off in the second half of the Top 10. In the end, Sainz was fastest with a 1m10.814s lap after a late improvement with Russell slotting in second from Verstappen.
It was heavy knockout zone in Q2 with both Alpines out where Esteban Ocon (1m11.605s) led teammate Fernando Alonso (1m11.613s) in 12th and 13th, who had a moment on his final lap and complained of traffic but it didn’t look like one.
They slotted behind AlphaTauri’s Pierre Gasly (1m11.512s). Alfa Romeo’s Guanyu (1m11.704s) pitted eventually to be 14th while Williams’ Alexander Albon (1m11.802s) also did not venture out for a final lap to be 15th.
Q3:
The final part in F1 qualifying at Dutch GP saw Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc show some pace on his first quick lap of 1m10.456s which was 0.059s faster than Verstappen to take provisional pole, as Hamilton slotted in third from Sainz and Perez.
There was another flare moment but was quickly taken off as the final lap saw a big fight between Verstappen (1m10.342s) and Leclerc (1m10.363s) where the Dutchman took F1 Dutch GP pole by 0.021s, as Sainz (1m10.434s) rounded out the Top 3 positions.
Hamilton (1m10.648s) was fourth from Perez (1m11.077s), who spun off at the final corner bringing out the yellow flags. Russell (1m11.147s) was sixth from McLaren’s Lando Norris (1m11.174s), Haas’ Mick Schumacher (1m11.442s), Tsunoda (1m12.556s) as Aston Martin’s Lance Stroll did not take the track due to a mechanical issue.
