Qualifying is always important, but even more so at the Hungaroring, especially this year. It’s never been an easy track to overtake on. Still, with the natural energy-saving nature of the circuit, energy deployment won’t be as effective on the main straight, meaning we’re likely to see even fewer overtakes. Starting position is crucial around this circuit, though the pole-sitter hasn’t won here since Lewis Hamilton in 2020, which will give those in and around pole a bit of hope.
Q1 Report – Both Williams out after balance issues
Aston Martin’s major chassis upgrade brought Alonso into Q2 for the first time this season. But with one team’s success comes another team’s failures; Williams had a nightmare of a Q1. Both Alex Albon and Carlos Sainz failed to deliver clean laps after struggling with balance and understeer.
The Astons were joined by Ollie Bearman, who was knocked out by last-gasp efforts from both of the Alpines, Lance Stroll and both of the Cadillacs. It was McLaren’s Lando Norris that topped the timing table, followed by Antonelli and Verstappen.
Q2 Report – Can Lando be beaten?
Q2 started with Isack Hadjar spinning and bringing out the yellow flags. The grip seemed to be picking up as the session went along, with quicker laps coming in and drivers seemingly slightly more satisfied with their cars’ performance.
After bringing an upgrade this weekend, Liam Lawson was disappointed to drop out in Q2 after a difficult session, unable to keep up with the ever-consistent rookie Arvid Lindblad, who claimed P7. Like an Ed Sheeran song, Norris topped the charts again, followed by the eager Ferraris. Hadjar made up for his mistake, outqualifying his teammate Max Verstappen, whilst the flying Mercedes qualified 8th and 9th, almost a second behind Lando Norris. The German Veteran, Nico Hulkenberg, claimed the final position as he looks to set himself up for his first points of the season tomorrow.
Q3 Report – No, he can’t
After the first laps, it was Hamilton who topped the timings, followed closely by Lando Norris. It was expected that the track would evolve heavily as the session went on, but only Lando Norris and Kimi Antonelli could take advantage of a turbulent final lap. First, a yellow flag was shown as Max Verstappen lost it in the final corner and found himself facing the wrong way. Russell then brought them back out after coming to a halt with a water leak just before the last turn, where Verstappen had spun.
After all of the chaos, it was Norris who took his first pole as World Champion, just one hundredth of a second quicker than Hamilton in second. Charles Leclerc completed the top three. There were no real surprises in the pecking order given Verstappen and Russell’s incidents and the general lack of grip for everyone else. It’s worth noting that Lewis Hamilton has been noted for obstructing Oscar Piastri, who sarcastically gave the British legend a thumbs up, despite his apologies.
Tomorrow’s Starting Grid
Pole: Lando Norris 2nd: Lewis Hamilton (for now) 3rd: Charles Leclerc 4th: Kimi Antonelli 5th: Oscar Piastri 6th: Max Verstappen 7th: George Russell 8th: Isack Hadjar 9th: Arvid Lindblad 10th: Nico Hulkenberg 11th: Liam Lawson 12th: Pierre Gasly 13th: Franco Colapinto 14th: Gabriel Bortoleto 15th: Esteban Ocon 16th: Fernando Alonso 17th: Ollie Bearman 18th: Carlos Sainz 19th: Alex Albon 20th: Lance Stroll 21st: Valtteri Bottas 22nd: Sergio Pérez
It’s lights out at 2pm BST tomorrow for 70 laps around the Hungaroring in what looks to be an exciting race. Can Lando hold off the Ferraris? Can Antonelli win from fourth like Leclerc in 2025 or Hamilton in ’23? See you tomorrow.
