Qualifying on the dazzling circuit of Yas Marina has never failed to deliver. Would Mercedes be able to continue their dominance on the track since the hybrid turbo era was introduced however? With the cards stacked heavily in their favour, Mercedes will hope to close off another stellar season in motor-racing on top.
Q1 – Mercedes once again prove their dominance at the Yas Marina circuit.
The first segment of qualifying proved to be no surprise as Lewis Hamilton topped the timing sheets with a 1:35.851 lap, +0.251 from Red Bull’s Alex Albon who was the only driver to manage to get close and in fact put himself between the Mercedes pair.
Valtteri Bottas managed 3rd, only +0.349 behind his team mate, but the result for him this weekend doesn’t matter much as he has a penalty for replacing an engine which will drop him to the back of the grid regardless. Ferrari showed blistering pace in sectors 1 and 2, but a lacklustre time in the third sector hindered their progress any higher in the time sheets.
No real surprise eliminations at the end of Q1, with ever struggling Williams keeping the tradition of getting knocked out early.
A bit of action for the stewards, as Toro Rosso’s Daniil Kvyat was released from his pit dangerously and nearly caused a collision with HAAS’ Roman Grosjean, which will be investigated further at the end of the race.
Eliminated drivers after Q1 are:
16. Grosjean – +2.200
17. Giovinazzi – +2.263
18. Raikkonen – +2.532
19. Russell – +2.866
20. Kubica – +3.385
Q2 – Surprise as Leclerc crawls on top in the dying second of the session.
Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc pipped Lewis Hamilton in the dying moments of Q2. Excitement for the Ferrari crew as Charles somehow managed a great lap and gave hope to his team at the end of the second part of qualifying.
Mercedes and Red Bull plus Ferrari’s Leclerc set their quickest times on the medium tyre, while Sebastian Vettel did his on the soft, meaning they will start Sunday’s race on the more durable tyre showcasing a possible difference in strategies for the race.
What could be Nico Hulkenberg’s last F1 race saw him just about progress into Q3 in the dying moments of the session. He will be hoping for a strong points finish tomorrow to end a great F1 career, for the time being at least, on a high.
Drivers Eliminated in Q2 are:
11. Perez – +1.512
12. Gasly – +1.546
13. Stroll – +1.560
14. Kvyat – +1.598
15. Magnussen – +1.711
Q3 – Mercedes regain their place on the front row as Hamilton claims the last pole for 2019.
Lewis Hamilton has won the last Qualifying session of the 2019 F1 season. An amazing lap of 1:34.779 was more than enough to place the Brit on top, above his team mate Valtteri Bottas who managed to get closest, just 0.194 behind.
With Bottas having to start at the back of the grid due to penalties from changing the power unit, Red Bull’s Max Verstappen will start the last race this season on the front row, hoping he could end his season with another win.
The second row is a Ferrari lock-out, with Charles taking P3 and Sebastian in P4. Leclerc was displeased at the end of qualifying as he couldn’t set another lap time due to what he claimed was that Sebastian ‘slowed down’ which made Charles miss the chance to set another lap by a few seconds.
Alex Albon takes up P5, a long long away from his team mate who starts on front row, Albon will be disappointed as it was clear that Red Bull have better pace than Ferrari this weekend and he will be hoping to improve in the race tomorrow.
Q3’s top 10 line up as follows:
- Hamilton – 1:34.779
- Bottas – +0.194
- Verstappen – +0.360
- Leclerc – +0.440
- Vettel – +0.560
- Albon – +0.903
- Norris – +1.657
- Ricciardo – +1.667
- Sainz – +1.700
- Hulkenberg – +1.931
(Picture by Willo2173, under Creative Commons license)
