© Getty Images2024 British Grand Prix - Qualifying ReportWeather causes issues for Bulls at British Grand Prix qualifying
MaxbattledtheelementsandcardamagetohaulhisOracleRedBullRacingRB20tofourthplaceinqualifyingfortheBritishGrandPrix,asthetopthreegridspotsatSilverstonewenttotheBritishtrioofGeorgeRussell,LewisHamiltonandLandoNorris.Furtherback,ChecoexitedqualifyinginP19afterhewentoffatCopsecornerandwasleftbeachedinthegravelmidwaythroughQ1.
Watch:Checo'sQualiReaction
Heavy rain in the build-up to the final hour of practice meant that FP3 got underway with large amounts of standing water on track and Intermediate tyres on board for the whole field. The tricky nature of the conditions was emphasised early on when Max had a spin at the exit of Brooklands, while Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc slid wide at high-speed Copse. They both managed to continue, but the slippery surface proved too unpredictable for Pierre Gasly and when the Frenchman beached his Alpine at Vale, the red flags came out.
A short delay allowed drivers to get more running in before the expected further rain began to fall, and with a dry line beginning to appear, times tumbled.
In a lottery of track timing, Max traded top spot with the Ferrari, Mercedes and McLaren drivers but as the rain began to fall harder it was Mercedes’ George Russell who went quickest, followed by team-mate Lewis Hamilton, McLaren’s Lando Norris and Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz. Max slotted into fifth place, while Checo ended FP3 in ninth place.
A Soggy FP3© Getty Images
Downpours also characterised the build-up to qualifying but once again as the clock ticked towards the start of Q1, the sun began to shine, leaving drivers facing a wet track but in drying conditions.
At the start of the session, on Intermediate tyres, Max initially took top spot with a lap of 1:37.518, with McLaren’s Lando Norris a tenth off in P2. Checo opened with a 1:38.348 that left him in P8 and as Mercedes’ George Russell took top spot with his second flyer, Charles Leclerc headed back to the pits for a set of slick Soft tyres.
That prompted Checo to also make the move to Softs. However after emerging, he suffered a snap of oversteer going into Copse and though he managed to rescue the moment, his RB20 went off into the wet run-off and he lost control and slid backwards into the gravel where his car became beached. The red flags were flown, and with Checo unable to get going again, he exited Q1.
After a nine-minute halt, the session resumed with all the drivers on Softs. But as Piastri took spot with a lap of 1:30.895, Max almost suffered the same fate as Checo. On the slippery surface the champion had a snap into Copse and though he was also forced into the run-off and through the gravel, he was able to keep his RB20 going, though with consequences for the rest of his session.
With improvements flooding in elsewhere, the Dutch driver sank down the order and with the clock counting down he had to immediately make another attempt. The lap was solid and his 1:31.832 was good enough for P3 but with only light rain falling the times kept on tumbling, forcing Max to go again as the chequered flag came out. And as Hamilton took top spot ahead of Russell, Leclerc and Sainz, Max went through to Q2 in P11 thanks to a lap of 1:31.242.
Out, though went Sauber’s Valtteri Bottas in P16 ahead of Haas’ Kevin Magnussen, Alpine’s Esteban Ocon, Checo, in P19, and last placed Pierre Gasly in the second Alpine.
Stones Fly As Checo Is Beached© Getty Images
With the drizzle halting, the second session saw Soft tyres on board once again and in the early exchanges it was Norris who took top spot, with the McLaren driver posting a lap of 1:27.432 to sit a tenth clear of Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz.
Max’s opener of 1:27.799 initially put him fourth, but he soon slid back to 10th as drivers stayed out and improved. The champion’s second flyer was much better, however, and as Sainz took top spot ahead of Alonso, Max put in a 1:27.366 to take third.
As Norris took P1 and improvements came in elsewhere, Max once again dropped down the order, to 10th place and the edge of the drop zone. His final flyer therefore became a real do or die effort but once again, Max was up to the challenge.
With Norris holding on to P1 ahead of Russell and Alonso, Max hauled his RB20 to a lap time of 1:26.796, just over two tenths off Norris, but only up to sixth place at the end of the session.
While Max avoided going out of Q2, Leclerc was unable to avoid that fate and the Monegasque driver was ruled out in P11 ahead of Williams’ Logan Sargeant, Visa Cash App RB’s Yuki Tsunoda, Sauber’s Zhou Guanyu and the second Visa Cash App RB of Daniel Ricciardo.
Waiting To Head Out© Getty Images
In his first flying lap of the top 10 shootout, Max went out on a new set of Softs and his time of 1:26.350 was good enough for fifth place as Russell took provisional pole ahead of Norris and Hamilton, with Piastri a little over a tenth ahead of Max in fourth.
It looked like Max might still have a shot at a top-three slot on the grid in his final lap, but the Dutchman went wide at Turn 4. Pushing to the limit, he recovered some of the lost time through the final two sectors but with Russell snatching pole ahead of Hamilton and Norris, who also made a mistake on his final flyer, Max had to settle for the rear of row two for tomorrow’s race alongside Norris.
Behind the champion, Piastri qualified fifth ahead of Hülkenberg, while Sainz took seventh ahead of Aston Martin’s Lance Stroll, Williams’ Alex Albon and the second Aston of Fernando Alonso.
Focused For Q3© Getty Images
| Rank | Driver | Team | Time | Gap | | 1 | George Russell | Mercedes | 1:25.819 | – |
| 2 | Lewis Hamilton | Mercedes | 1:25.990 | +0.171 |
| 3 | Lando Norris | McLaren | 1:26.030 | +0.211 |
| 4 | Max Verstappen | Oracle Red Bull Racing | 1:26.203 | +0.384 |
| 5 | Oscar Piastri | McLaren | 1:26.237 | +0.418 |
| 6 | Nico Hulkenberg | Haas | 1:26.338 | +0.519 |
| 7 | Carlos Sainz | Ferrari | 1:26.509 | +0.690 |
| 8 | Lance Stroll | Aston Martin | 1:26.585 | +0.766 |
| 9 | Alex Albon | Williams | 1:26.640 | +0.821 |
| 10 | Fernando Alonso | Aston Martin | 1:26.917 | +1.098 |
| ... | ... | ... | ... | |
| 19 | Sergio Pérez | Oracle Red Bull Racing | 1:38.348 (in Q1) | +8.801 (in Q1) |
