Verstappen secured his first pole position since June before being penalised, Russell starts from the front for the fifth time and Zhou records his best Grand Prix qualifying result of the season. Here are the facts and statistics from qualifying at the 2024 Qatar Grand Prix.
RUSSELL ON POLE, VERSTAPPEN PENALISED
Max Verstappen set the fastest lap time in qualifying at the 2024 Qatar Grand Prix. This was the first time Verstappen set the fastest lap time in qualifying since the Belgian Grand Prix and would have been the first time he’d start from pole position since the Austrian Grand Prix in June. However, Verstappen was handed a one-place grid penalty after having been deemed to have driven unnecessarily slowly in Q3.
As a result of Verstappen’s penalty, George Russell inherited pole position. This was his fourth pole position of the season and marked his third consecutive front row start – the longest front row starting streak of his career to date.
This was the fifth pole position of Russell’s career, making him the 54th driver to secure as many as five poles in Formula 1. He ties the career tallies of Giuseppe Farina, Chris Amon, Clay Regazzoni, Patrick Tambay and Keke Rosberg.
Verstappen starts from the front row for the first time since the Mexico City Grand Prix. His penalty means that he has started from pole position only once in the last 16 Grands Prix.
Russell’s pole saw Mercedes become the first team to take multiple pole positions at the Qatar Grand Prix. Russell is the third different polesitter in the three Grands Prix to date at Lusail Circuit.
Verstappen’s fastest lap time in Q3 was a 1:20.520 – 0.307 seconds faster than Lewis Hamilton’s former track record, set in qualifying for the 2021 race.
Russell and Verstappen share the front row at the Qatar Grand Prix for a second consecutive season.
IN THE TOP 10 FOR THE 2024 QATAR GRAND PRIX
Max Verstappen, Lewis Hamilton, Lando Norris, Oscar Piastri and Fernando Alonso all maintained their 100% Q3 appearance rate at the Qatar Grand Prix.
Lando Norris qualified in third place for the 2024 Qatar Grand Prix. It was his first top five qualifying result at Lusail Circuit, having had a previous best qualifying result at the track of sixth in 2021.
The 2024 Qatar Grand Prix marked Ferrari and Red Bull’s first double Q3 appearance at Lusail Circuit.
Mercedes are the only team to reach Q3 with both cars at all three Qatar Grand Prix weekends to date.
Setting the sixth fastest time in Q3, Lewis Hamilton qualified outside of the top five for a fifth consecutive Grand Prix.
Hamilton’s sixth place marked the first time that a Mercedes driver qualified outside of the top three at Lusail Circuit.
With eighth place, Fernando Alonso qualified in the top eight for the first time since the United States Grand Prix.
Sergio Perez reached Q3 at Lusail Circuit for the first time. Qualifying ninth, this was the first time that Perez qualified higher than tenth since the Azerbaijan Grand Prix. This was his second Q3 appearance in the last six races.
Qualifying tenth, Kevin Magnussen reached Q3 for the third time in his last four Grand Prix appearances.
This was the Haas team’s first Q3 appearance at the Qatar Grand Prix.
OUT IN Q2
For only the second time in 2024, after the Spanish Grand Prix, both Sauber drivers made it out of Q1 at the Qatar Grand Prix.
This is the first Qatar Grand Prix weekend in which neither Sauber (formerly Alfa Romeo) driver has been eliminated in Q1.
Qualifying 12th, Zhou Guanyu recorded his best qualifying result of the 2024 season to date. This is the first time Zhou has qualified in the top 12 since reaching Q3 at the 2023 Mexico City Grand Prix.
Zhou out-qualified Sauber team-mate Valtteri Bottas for a second consecutive race. It’s the first time he has out-qualified his team-mate at consecutive races since the 2023 Saudi Arabian and Australian Grands Prix.
Pierre Gasly and Valtteri Bottas both lost their 100% Q3 appearance records at the Qatar Grand Prix, exiting in Q2.
With Pierre Gasly out in Q2 and Esteban Ocon qualifying last, this was the first race since the Singapore Grand Prix at which neither driver reached Q3.
OUT IN Q1
In the three Qatar Grand Prix weekends to date, 14 different drivers have exited in Q1. Liam Lawson became the first driver to record multiple Q1 eliminations at the Lusail Circuit. This was his first Q1 exit since last year’s Qatar Grand Prix.
Qualifying 17th, Lawson recorded his worst qualifying result of the season so far. He is yet to out-qualify Yuki Tsunoda in 2024 – and has done so only once in their ten appearances as team-mates to date.
Nico Hulkenberg recorded his second Q1 exit in the last three races.
Alex Albon recorded consecutive Q1 exits for the first time since the Spanish and Austrian Grands Prix.
With 19th place, Franco Colapinto recorded his worst qualifying result to date in Formula 1.
This was the first time a Williams driver qualified on the back row at the Qatar Grand Prix.
Williams recorded their first double Q1 exit at the Qatar Grand Prix. This was the team’s second double Q1 elimination exit in the last 12 Grands Prix, having last seen both cars exit in Q1 at the United States Grand Prix.
Esteban Ocon qualified in 20th place for the 2024 Qatar Grand Prix. It marked the first time that an Alpine driver failed to make it out of Q1 at the Qatar Grand Prix, with neither of the team’s drivers having qualified outside of the top ten prior to 2024.
The Qatar Grand Prix is the second time in 2024 that Ocon has set the slowest qualifying lap time. He also did so in Azerbaijan.
Ocon is one of three drivers – along with Sergio Perez and Lance Stroll – to be out-qualified by their team-mate at all three Qatar Grand Prix weekends to date.
