Mexican Grand Prix – Qualifying: Carlos Sainz on Pole

Q1:

In Q1, the home country’s star, Sergio Perez, records a poor initial time. The Mexican had put in a solid performance here last year. It’s the two Ferraris who are the fastest in the first five minutes.

Lando Norris takes the lead on his first timed lap, while, in contrast, his teammate Oscar Piastri completely misses the mark.

Max Verstappen then sets the provisional fastest time with a 1:16.998, becoming the first to go under a minute and seventeen seconds. It’s worth noting the strong positions of the Williams drivers in the top five at this stage.

The Racing Bulls and Haas teams decided to do only one timed lap in this Q1 to save more sets of tires for tomorrow’s race. The gamble pays off, with all four drivers from Racing Bulls and Haas advancing to Q2.

With only one attempt left in this Q1, Piastri, Ocon, Zhou, Russell, and Perez find themselves on the brink of elimination. They need to give everything in this last lap to make it through Q1. Unfortunately, Sergio Perez fails to find the necessary pace. The Red Bull driver is eliminated at his home track, to the disappointment of his many fans, in Q1.

Oscar Piastri, for his part, loses his second lap time for exceeding track limits at the stadium entry. Forced to complete a second lap on the same tires, the McLaren driver only manages to qualify in 14th place and is also knocked out of Q1 by Leclerc, Magnussen, and Bottas.

These are the two big surprises of this Q1. Unfortunately, Esteban Ocon and Zhou Guanyu are also eliminated, along with rookie Franco Colapinto, who had put in a strong performance in Austin.

Eliminated in Q1: Colapinto, Piastri, Perez, Ocon, Zhou.

Q2:

During this 15-minute session, teams usually do two timed laps with a preparation lap and a cooldown lap back to the pits. In the first attempt, Lando Norris edges out Max Verstappen. Carlos Sainz is in the top three ahead of the second attempt. These three men seem like the top contenders for pole, which will later prove true. Meanwhile, Charles Leclerc sees his lap time deleted for exceeding track limits, leaving him with only one attempt to reach Q3.

There’s little room for error on this track. Still dusty here in Mexico, the track gradually improves, but the gaps remain tight. The short 4.3-kilometer circuit leaves little room for mistakes, placing intense pressure on the drivers.

Yuki Tsunoda falls victim first. Despite a strong time, the Racing Bulls driver tries to make it into Q3 but takes too much speed into the stadium section and slides into the Tecpro barriers. The FIA brings out the red flag, ending Q2 prematurely. He currently sits in 11th place if the Racing Bull does not need a gearbox change.

The red flag saves the time of Alpine’s Pierre Gasly, who was at risk in 10th place. Lawson was improving but remains halted in P12, ahead of both Aston Martins and Valtteri Bottas.

Norris sets the fastest time of Q2, ahead of Verstappen and the two Ferraris.

Eliminated in Q2: Tsunoda, Lawson, Alonso, Stroll, Bottas.

Q3:

In this Q3, the first timed run once again highlights the Ferraris, who post the two fastest times, with Sainz ahead of Leclerc. Lando Norris is only in 5th place, but the pressure is squarely on Max Verstappen, whose first lap time is deleted by the FIA for exceeding track limits.

In the final timed attempt, Charles Leclerc cannot secure pole, while his teammate increases his lead. And it was necessary because Max Verstappen climbs to P2 ahead of Lando Norris.

Ultimately, Carlos Sainz secures the fastest time and will start from pole position for the Mexican Grand Prix. Max Verstappen will line up alongside him on the front row, ahead of his main championship rival, Lando Norris. Charles Leclerc rounds out the top four, setting the stage for an exciting start. Last week in Austin, the two championship contenders slowed each other down, allowing Ferrari to take the lead.

Qualifying results for the 2024 Mexican Grand Prix: