Lando Norris took the final pole position of the 2024 Formula One season, set to line up alongside McLaren teammate Oscar Piastri for Formula One’s season finale — the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.
It became evident throughout the practice sessions that McLaren was the team to beat, Norris and Piastri at the top of the timesheets for FP2 and FP3. The team sits 21 points ahead of Ferrari in the constructors’ standings. Between McLaren’s respective performances so far this weekend and Charles Leclerc’s 10-place grid drop, it’s a steep hill for Ferrari to climb to secure its first title since 2008. And it doesn’t help that Leclerc exceeded track limits late in Q2, dropping him down to P14. The grid drop ensures the Ferrari driver will start from the back of the field in P19.
Q1 saw a few surprises by the time the first session ended. Sauber’s Valtteri Bottas split the Ferraris and recorded the second-fastest time, and both Haas drivers advanced to Q2, which is critical for the fight for P6 in the constructors’ standings. But the biggest shock was Lewis Hamilton being knocked out in Q1, a bollard getting stuck under his car in the final few corners of the last flying lap.
In addition to Leclerc’s Q2 drop, both RB drivers, as well as Kevin Magnussen and Lance Stroll, were eliminated. This put pressure on Nico Hülkenberg and Pierre Gasly because five points separate Alpine and Haas in the constructors’ standings, with Alpine leading. Red Bull’s Sergio Pérez narrowly slid through, and Bottas continued thriving as he advanced to Q3, setting a lap time quicker than the Red Bull driver. The Finnish driver, who does not have a seat on the grid next year, has yet to score a point this season.
Q2 CLASSIFICATION
Q3 it is! What an effort from Valtteri 💪 #F1 #AbuDhabiGP pic.twitter.com/2J4qq2UUVV
— Formula 1 (@F1) December 7, 2024
The final round of qualifying started with a brief scare. Verstappen nearly crashed out on the final corner of his first flying Q3 lap but managed to set the fastest time. Norris came close to the Dutchman’s time, just 0.004s off the Red Bull. With under four minutes to go, a slew of drivers left the pits for their final qualifying laps of the 2024 season. Sainz sat behind both McLaren drivers ahead of the last flying laps after stewards reinstated Piastri’s first Q3 lap time.
Hülkenberg was the first to beat Verstappen’s initial time, but Piastri soon passed the Haas driver. And it was Piastri’s teammate who topped them all. Sainz will line up third, a second-row start alongside Hülkenberg. This will give Haas an edge over Alpine, with Gasly lining up the row behind.
Here’s how the top 10 qualified.
- Lando Norris
- Oscar Piastri
- Carlos Sainz
- Nico Hülkenberg
- Max Verstappen
- Pierre Gasly
- George Russell
- Fernando Alonso
- Valtteri Bottas
- Sergio Pérez
Top photo: GIUSEPPE CACACE/AFP via Getty Images
