Although everyone expected a battle of the McLarens from qualifying, Max Verstappen once again delivered something that only Max Verstappen knows how to do.
Q1 started as the whole weekend had been so far: The two McLarens quickly took the lead and then dictated the pace of the field. Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri led the field, while the two Red Bulls were still a relevant force behind them. This is how we stood after the first laps, then Mercedes and Williams, who performed well in all three sessions, also entered the match. In the end, Max Verstappen, Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri finished in the lead in this stage, but we said goodbye to Esteban Ocon, Nico Hülkenberg, Jack Doohan, as well as Lance Stroll and Gabriel Bortoletó early.
Q2 didn't bring much change either, Verstappen continued to fight with the two McLarens, and when we see the Dutchman, we increasingly get the feeling that he is driving times out of the Red Bull that are not even in that car. However, the real excitement was on the edge of the top 10, as Alex Albon did not make it through, but surprisingly Carlos Sainz did, the two Racing Bulls and Fernando Alonso, as well as Bearman, also dropped out. The top 3 ended in the order of Norris, Verstappen, Piastri, from which the pole positioner will probably also be eliminated.
We expected a big battle in Q3, but Lando Norris came and messed it all up... Well, that's not entirely true, because he only crashed the McLaren and his own timekeeper into the wall, but he also got out of the rest of the race. Red flag! After a short time, the fight continued, where Verstappen set an amazing lap, followed by Piastri by just a thousandth. But George Russell didn't give up either, who put together an even stronger lap than them. First... Because Max Verstappen came and did magic again, beating Oscar Piastri, and beating the sensationally leading George Russell as well.
If tomorrow's Saudi Grand Prix is half as good, we'll just sign it...
Photo: Lat Images / F1
