The wait is finally over, after free tests in which Ferrari dominated with the best time of Charles Leclerc, then beaten in the last session by a strong McLaren, the time has come for qualifying. Red Bull is in visible difficulty with Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez, also recovering from the head-on collision suffered a few minutes before the end of the last free practice sessions. The Qualifications of the GP of Imola however, in addition to giving us emotion and adrenaline, they further demonstrate the strength and skill of Max. The Pole it's all his, to follow on the provisional podium Lando Norris e Oscar piastri, under investigation for impeding Hulkenberg.
Imola GP Qualifying, Q1 gives Ferrari hope
The first qualifying session begins with a maybe, that of Fernando Alonso. Aston MartinIn fact, she wasn't sure she could give away the fight for the starting grid of the Imola GP. The damage to her car, carried out in third free practice, gave the mechanics a hard time who by miracle managed to complete the repairs once the session had started. However, there was nothing to be done for the Spaniard, he went off the track again and then returned to the pits and never came out again. Part Inline.
The first laps bode well for the red team after some very powerful free practice sessions, all with a disadvantaged compound. 80 thousandths of a difference with the averages, while colleagues were running with new soft ones. The difficulty for the cars on the track was entirely Rivazza's, Albon and Norris, in fact, at the limit precisely at that point.
Despite the various difficulties, Nico Hulkenberg give one away amazing best time, so much so that he became leader of Q1 a few minutes from the end. The Dutchman, who shows his car to be much more stable than at the beginning of the weekend, doesn't like it. His last attempt snatches the position from Hulkenberg's Haas.
- excluding Q1: v Bottas - L. Sergeant – G. Zhou – k. Magnussen and F. Alonso
Q2: Yuki is in front, the Ferraris are starting to struggle
The first to come out are the two Mercedes di Lewis Hamilton e George Russell together with Williams di Alex Albon, obviously conquering the top positions. But it is with Max Verstappen's exit that the real challenge begins, reaching the best time of the entire weekend.
The fight, therefore, is all between Ferrari e McLaren, the second most advantaged thanks to an extra GP in which they were able to test the updates. Let us remember, in fact, that it is the first weekend of the SF24 Evo. The evolution is felt precisely with Leclerc, who lights up the best central sector, but unfortunately it is not enough, he is 58 thousandths behind Verstappen,
What is truly surprising, however, is Yuki tsunoda. He brings his VCARB to second place, behind his “home” rival: Max. On the razor's edge the Mercedes, who are unable to fight as they would like. Carlos Sainz also had the same difficulty, on the verge of exclusion several times. To save the situation in addition to their turns, there is Daniel Ricciardo that puts out Perez on the last lap with solo 15 thousandths of advantage. Racing Bulls is satisfying for Daniel and Yuki fans.
- excluding Q2 of the Imola GP: S. Perez - AND. Or with - L. Stroll - HAS. Albon and P. gasly
Qualifying for the Imola GP gave Max another record
Charles Leclerc tries to take his Ferrari up, but the first sector is difficult for him, so much so that he laps slower than Verstappen and Norris before him. He managed to place it only 3rd with a distance from the leaders of 147 thousandths.
The last laps in Imola turned out to be fiery, all the drivers improved lap after lap. Leclerc he remains third by a thousandth, and then climbs to fourth position with Oscar Piastres to precede him. Lando's best 2024 qualifications Norris I'm right in Imola, with only 21 thousandths of a distance between him and Max Verstappen. This confirms, after the victory in Miami, his undeniable skill.
La Ferrari is only 4th and 5th respectively with Charles Leclerc e Carlos Sainz. The two will probably gain a position thanks to Piastri's almost certain penalty. In fact, during the sessions Oscar has done impeding about Nico Hulkenberg. His second position will most likely turn into a fifth position.
La Pole, however, is once again all Dutch, Max conquers the8th consecutive just like Ayrton Senna, on the weekend of his memorial. There are those who speak of luck, of the trail given by Hulkenberg which makes him gain a tenth over Piastri - very close in the lap - but what, instead, should be praised is his undeniable skill.
