Hungarian Grand Prix – Qualifying: Lando Norris crushes the competition

Before the start of this session, we had to put our thinking caps on. Which tires to choose? With the heavy downpour that hit the Hungaroring between FP3 and qualifying, the track was soaking wet. But before the start of the first cars, the tarmac started to dry. Making it more complicated for the teams and drivers to make a choice.

The Q1

Despite the numerous wet areas on the track, it was the soft tires that were used from the first attempts. One of the first drivers to take to the track, Valtteri Bottas, confirmed that this strategy was the right one at the end of his warm-up lap.

Nico Hülkenberg set the first reference in 1:20’585”, beaten by more than a second by his teammate, a few seconds later. Drivers hurried to set an interesting time. Several radios indicated that rain was expected to return about ten minutes before the end of this first qualifying phase.

Once the midfield teams had passed, the leading teams set their benchmarks. The McLarens were beaten by Carlos Sainz in increasingly heavy rain. Lewis Hamilton put together the sectors to overtake the Spaniard (1:17’087”). Meanwhile, Logan Sargeant went straight on at the first corner. The American hit the tyre wall, but without major damage.

The track conditions deteriorated quickly. George Russell, who had been faster than his teammate the rest of the weekend, fell short by a second, but still managed to be in the Top 15. Many drivers lost a lot of time in the final sector.

Sergio Perez, six minutes from the end of Q1, lost control of his Red Bull and hit the wall. The car was destroyed in the impact. The red flag was immediately waved. Given the impact, many parts should be changed on the car. Christian Horner’s face did not show a good expression.

During the break, the rain increased in intensity and further soaked the track. Some drivers went out to dry it. It was effective as some marks were improved. In the final moments, Daniel Ricciardo set the best reference. The two Alpines were eliminated. Just like George Russell.

The eliminated: Gasly, Ocon, Zhou, Russell, Perez.

The Q2

Carlos Sainz is the only man to have started at the green light. No time wasted for the Spaniard, who took to the track with his old soft tires from Q1. The Ferrari driver set a time of 1:17’028”. This is a better time than what he had achieved in the first phase.

Max Verstappen is one of the few leaders to have put on new tires for this session. Lewis Hamilton, on the same strategy, beat Carlos Sainz by half a second. But the three-time world champion in the Red Bull went even faster (1:15’770”).

Lewis Hamilton improved his time on his last attempt, but seemed to be in great difficulty. The Briton was beaten by Daniel Ricciardo, the Ferrari drivers, Yuki Tsunoda. He finished in tenth and last qualifying place. Meanwhile, Lando Norris set the best time in Q2 (1:15’540”).

The eliminated: Magnussen, Sargeant, Albon, Bottas, Hülkenberg.

The Q3

They left right away. The drivers took off very quickly. Indeed, rain was announced six minutes after the green light. Faced with this risk of a downpour, Max Verstappen immediately put the pedal to the metal. His car was like on rails, no parasitic movement to report. Enough to give him the best provisional time (1:15’555”). Oscar Piastri was three tenths slower. Just like Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc.

Lando Norris impressed everyone with a blazing second sector. The British driver was three tenths faster than the triple world champion. The McLaren with the number 4 was impressive.

Despite the announced rain, some drivers made the choice to return to the track for a second attempt. The lap times of the first sector were improved by Piastri, Sainz, and Verstappen. The Australian failed by 22 thousandths, Carlos Sainz by nearly half a second. Max Verstappen finished 46 thousandths.

Yuki Tsunoda violently went off track. The VCARB was shattered. The red flag was brought out. It’s the second of the session. After cleaning the track, a handful of men wanted to try their luck one last time. No improvement is to be noted. Except for Daniel Ricciardo, who gained a place.

The two McLarens will start from the front row tomorrow, with Max Verstappen lurking close behind.

The ranking