Lando Norris takes sprint pole at Qatar 2024

Lando Norris, with a solid performance in his McLaren, secured pole position for the sprint race at the Qatar Grand Prix, ahead of George Russell and Oscar Piastri in a closely contested qualifying session. Norris set the fastest time on his first attempt with soft tires, leaving no room for his competitors. Despite a slight gravel mishap on his second lap, his initial time proved unbeatable for the rest of the field.

Oscar Piastri set the fastest first sector on his second attempt, but the times in the following sectors prevented him from improving his position, ultimately finishing third. George Russell, on the other hand, seized his last opportunity to take second place, just 0.063 seconds behind Norris's time.

Carlos Sainz will join Piastri on the second row after a consistent lap that earned him fourth place. Sainz was forced to abort his first attempt due to traffic on the track, requiring three preparation laps before his final attempt. Charles Leclerc positioned himself right behind his teammate Sainz, while Max Verstappen, the season champion, finished sixth without improving his time on the final lap.

Lewis Hamilton finished seventh, showing a less competitive pace compared to the drivers battling at the top of the table. Pierre Gasly secured eighth place, followed by Nico Hülkenberg, while Liam Lawson completed the top ten despite having a lap invalidated for exceeding track limits.

Fernando Alonso, who was aiming to advance to SQ3, was displaced at the last moment by an improvement from Gasly, leaving him in eleventh position. Alex Albon followed closely, affected by a small mistake in turn 15 that cost him crucial milliseconds.

Valtteri Bottas also failed to break into the top ten, losing time in the final sector of his fast lap. Lance Stroll and Kevin Magnussen could not improve enough in Q2, being eliminated. Sergio Pérez had a tough session, exiting in Q1 just 0.013 seconds off the cutoff time set by Albon.

At the back of the grid, Esteban Ocon was surpassed by several drivers improving their times at the end of the session, relegating him to the last positions. Zhou Guanyu and Franco Colapinto closed the timing sheet without making significant progress on their final attempts.

Sprint Classification of the Qatar Grand Prix 2024