2024 F1 Grand Prix of Azerbaijan — Qualifying results

Leclerc claims pole in chaotic Baku qualifying; Piastri edges Sainz for P2 but Norris knocked out in Q1 shocker; Perez out-qualifies Verstappen for once, P4 to P6

On a fascinating and chaotic day of Saturday qualifying for the Azerbaijan Gran Prix at the always challenging Baku City Circuit it was Ferrari’s Chalres Leclerc who carried the momentum from his dream win at Monza two weeks ago and converted it into pole position for Sunday’s Grand Prix. The Monegasque’s excellent run of qualifying form at Baku also continued, as he earned his fourth consecutive pole here. Leclerc, however, has never concerted those into wins in Azerbaijan, something he will be more than eager to do come race day tomorrow. McLaren’s Oscar Piastri slotted in alongside the lead Ferrari with a time good enough for P2, while Leclerc’s Scuderia stablemate Carlos Sainz laid down the third fastest lap in Q3. Unfortunately for McLaren and their highest placed driver, Lando Norris was unceremoniously bounced out of Q1 after some confusion over lifting for a yellow flag that appeared in actuality to be the “slow down” white flag. Starting from a lowly P16, Norris and his brain trust will have it all to do tomorrow to try and keep his points pursuit of Red Bull’s Max Verstappen on track. The young English contender will likely need help from a Safety Car and /or Red Flag, plus some canny strategy calls from the pit wall to get a decent result.

Speaking of Red Bull and Verstappen, it was another bewildering day for the Dutch master, as teammate Sergio Perez firmly bested him in quali, P4 to P6. It was the first time this season that the Mexican veteran, who is fighting to stay in his Red Bull seat after a massive midseason slump, has out-qualified his championship-leading teammate. Mercedes’ George Russell split the Red Bull’s with the fifth fatstest time, clinching the season’s qualifying battle with his highly decorated teammate Lewis Hamilton, 13 to 4. Hamilton could only muster P7 on the day, though the seven-time World Champion has a habit of coming good in the races. Aston Martin’s Fernando Alonso over-performed his rather tepid mount to the tune of a P8 starting spot, while raw rookie Franco Colapinto go the better of his senior Williams teammate Alex Albon in only his second F1 effort, P9 to P10. Colapinto, who was drafted into the team to replace the struggling American Logan Seargeant at Monza, has looked impressive throughout the weekend at this rather daunting circuit. He was also helped by Albon not being able to get a final lap due to inexplicably leaving the pits with the airbox fan still attached. It remains to be seen if Albon will face any penalties for tomorrow’s race due to that obvious unsafe release.

Top 10 qualifiers for the Azerbaijan GP:

POS

NO

DRIVER

CAR

Q1

Q2

Q3

LAPS

1

16

Charles Leclerc

Ferrari

1:42.775

1:42.056

1:41.365

20

2

81

Oscar Piastri

McLaren Mercedes

1:43.033

1:42.598

1:41.686

19

3

55

Carlos Sainz

Ferrari

1:43.357

1:42.503

1:41.805

23

4

11

Sergio Perez

Red Bull Racing Honda RBPT

1:43.213

1:42.263

1:41.813

15

5

63

George Russell

Mercedes

1:43.139

1:42.329

1:41.874

20

6

1

Max Verstappen

Red Bull Racing Honda RBPT

1:43.097

1:42.042

1:42.023

20

7

44

Lewis Hamilton

Mercedes

1:43.089

1:42.765

1:42.289

22

8

14

Fernando Alonso

Aston Martin Aramco Mercedes

1:43.472

1:42.426

1:42.369

19

9

43

Franco Colapinto

Williams Mercedes

1:43.138

1:42.473

1:42.530

20

10

23

Alexander Albon

Williams Mercedes

1:42.899

1:42.840

1:42.859

19

Complete qualifying results available via Formula1.com.

Tomorrow’s race aires live on ESPN beginning at 7 am Eastern here in the States. With the grid jumbled and a lot of drivers out of position, it should be an action packed start that Leclerc and Piastri will look to stay ahead of in pursuit of victory. Hope to see you then to find out how it all shakes out!