Azerbaijan GP Qualifying: Teams & Drivers report from Baku

Charles Leclerc powered to his fourth pole position in a row, for the eighth Azerbaijan Grand Prix. He will be joined on the front row by McLaren's Oscar Piastri, and the second Ferrari of Carlos Sainz lines up P3 for Sunday's race in Baku.

One second separated Leclerc on pole and Fernando Alonso in P9, indicating a very tight midfield, including Red Bull's Championship leader Max Verstappen starting P6. Even worse is his closest 2024 F1 world title rival Lando Norris who will start his McLaren from P17.

After a tense but enthralling Qualifying session in Baku on Saturday, this is what F1 teams and drivers had to report:

Team Report: "Charles Leclerc did not disappoint, for the fourth year in a row outpacing the rest of the field at the Baku City Circuit, to give Scuderia Ferrari HP its 252nd pole position. Rounding off an excellent team result, Carlos Sainz will start right behind his team-mate tomorrow, having qualified third, his best ever result in Azerbaijan. Clearly Leclerc was not affected by his tricky Friday and dominated the top ten shoot-out, outpacing second placed Oscar Piastri by over three tenths of a second. Even Charles’ first timed lap in Q3 would have been good enough for pole. It was Charles’ 26th career pole, which puts him equal with Finnish champion Mika Hakkinen in the standings."

P1. Charles Leclerc: "I’m satisfied with my lap today. This is a track I’ve always felt comfortable on and I’ve been happy with the feeling in the car from the start of the weekend. We barely changed anything from FP1 in terms of set-up, which is quite rare, and I knew that the confidence was there.
Tomorrow will be a long race and tyre management will be key, so we will focus on that and give it our all to bring home another victory for our team."

P3. Carlos Sainz: "It was a solid qualifying in which I was able to build up confidence as the session went on. Q1 was a bit messy but a smoother Q2 helped, ahead of the final two runs in Q3. On the last attempt I made a mistake in sector 2 and paid the price, but overall we are in a good spot to fight tomorrow with both cars. Now we'll prepare ourselves thoroughly for the race. A good start and especially tyre management are going to be key. Let's race!"

Fred Vasseur, Team Principal Scuderia Ferrari HP: "It was a very good session in Baku today, with Charles always towards the top of the time sheets despite yesterday’s crash. I was sure nothing could affect his confidence as this is one of his favourite circuits. I am also pleased for Carlos who made a big step forward at this track: P3 is very good for him and this means we have both our cars in very strong start positions for tomorrow. Our pace in free practice has been good, even if we were only able to do the long run work with Carlos. Now we will focus on ourselves and will prepare the race in detail with the aim of performing consistently through to the end of the race. Baku is a track where it is very easy to make mistakes, from the drivers and from the teams and where overtaking is definitely possible, so we need once more to execute the race perfectly, always maintaining concentration so as to be ready for every possible scenario.

P2. Oscar Piastri: “I’m happy to be starting P2. This Baku track rewards commitment, and on the last lap I knew I had a lot less to lose, so I was trying to maximise the potential of the car to get the most out of it, and I think I did. I got a bit closer to the walls than I might have liked, but I’m very happy with my performance in Q3. We can be very optimistic about where we’re starting. Our pace is good – but that Ferrari is not slow either, so it should be a very exciting race. I’m looking forward to seeing what we can do tomorrow.”

P17. Lando Norris: “It’s frustrating to be knocked out of Qualifying in Q1 but there was nothing I could do. I was shown a yellow flag and slowed down, which ended my chances of getting a lap in. Until then the pace looked good, and we wouldn’t have had a problem getting into Q2. Frustrating, but now we look ahead to tomorrow and see where we can maximise the result. This isn’t the easiest track to overtake at, but opportunities often present themselves in Baku. We’ll work hard tonight and see what we can do tomorrow.”

Andrea Stella, Team Principal: “It’s been a mixed Qualifying for us here in Baku. On Lando’s side, he was unfortunate to not get his second lap in due to an unexpected yellow flag caused by a slow car out of Turn 16. Before that his pace looked close to that of Oscar’s, who progressed comfortably into Q2 with a P3. A frustrating result, but the Baku City Circuit often throws up opportunities throughout the race, so we will work tonight to ensure we are in a condition to maximise our result and score valuable points tomorrow. On Oscar’s side we were able to extract the potential pace from the car and secure a front-row start for tomorrow. It’s a very strong performance from Oscar to be P2 at this track, second only to Charles Leclerc who already has a few pole positions at this circuit. It shows the strength and maturity of Oscar, and offers us a good chance to fight for an important result tomorrow, when multiple Teams can be in contention for the win.”

P5. George Russell: "I was pretty happy with my laps in Qualifying. They all felt strong but unfortunately, we didn't quite have the pace to fight for pole position. We topped the times in FP3, but we knew that this flattered us a little bit, having run right at the very end of the session. We thought we would be in a battle just outside of the top three. It is therefore a little frustrating to be half-a-tenth from P3 but P5 isn't a bad place to start from. Ferrari are typically quick at street circuits and that proved to be the case once again today. I don't think we will be able to race them for victory tomorrow but hopefully we are in the battle for the podium."

P7. Lewis Hamilton: "Baku Qualifying was disappointing as we had a good day yesterday and I thought we could be in the fight for the front two rows. Unfortunately, I was struggling to get the tyres working and that is what it is all about. We will analyse why that was as a team and hopefully make improvements moving forward. The aim is to move forward tomorrow, and I am staying positive that we can do so. It is not always easy to progress here, but we have a slightly different tyre strategy to others which may help us. We will also have to look after the tyres as it is easy to suffer with the rears. If we can do so, then hopefully we can have a better day than we had today.

Toto Wolff, Team Principal & CEO: "Qualifying proved frustrating today. Ferrari have looked strong all weekend, so we knew that it was unlikely we would be fighting for pole position. We worked hard to make improvements overnight and, although we were flattered by FP3, looked to be able to battle for the second row. After our first runs in Q3 that seemed possible. Unfortunately, on our second efforts we had a slightly compromised out lap and missed out on P3 by just half-a-tenth of a second. George was happier throughout the session and ended up P5. Lewis struggled with tyre temperature and finished P7. It leaves us with work to do tomorrow but it is a long race, and our aim is to move forward. We haven't got a clear idea of where we are compared to our competitors on the long run so we will see what we can do."

Andrew Shovlin, Trackside Engineering Director: "We made some overnight changes with the aim of getting the car into a better place, not only for qualifying today but tomorrow's race too. The outcome this weekend will ultimately be dictated by long run pace, so it was important that we continued to work on protecting the rear tyres for Sunday. After a disrupted Friday, George was happier with the overall balance in FP3, but Lewis felt less comfortable than he did the day before. Whilst George topped the times in that session, we knew we were unlikely to be challenging for pole position. After making it through the first two segments of qualifying, we looked like we may challenge for the second row. Unfortunately, the out laps on our second run were slower than we would have liked and that cost us some crucial tyre temperature on those final efforts. That may have cost George a couple of places and we found ourselves in the middle of a tight bunch, rather than at the front."

P9. Franco Colapinto: "To achieve Q3 in only my second Qualifying session in F1 is an amazing feeling for me and the team. I was not expecting to go into Q3 as I was just going session by session building up throughout. The car has been on point so far this weekend and I’ve been getting more comfortable with the car and learning a new track. I think we maximised almost every run we did today. We had a difficult start yesterday, but we’ve done a great job to turn it around. It was important to build my confidence up after the crash in FP1 especially at a street track. My mistake in FP1 meant I couldn’t do a long run which could hurt me tomorrow, but I think we can do our prep tonight and understand where I can improve. I’m proud of what we’re already achieving together as this is only the start with plenty of races left. Let’s see what we can do tomorrow."

P10. Alex Albon: "We’ve had three Q3’s in a row now which is a positive, and getting both cars through to Q3 is good. The car is performing well and the upgrade is working. Funnily enough, I’m actually not that happy with the car this weekend but that’s a positive sign as it shows there’s even more to come and we are still good on race pace. With the issue with the fan in Q3, these things happen. Nobody did it on purpose and the team will review what happened, but realistically I was only going to gain one, maybe two positions if everything went perfectly and we can still fight from the top ten."

Sven Smeets, Sporting Director: "The team did a great job overnight to find more performance for today because after FP3 this morning both drivers were happier with the balance of the car than yesterday. For Qualifying the cloud cover disappeared and track temperature creeped up but with clean and well executed runs both drivers proceeded into Q2. We knew it was going to be harder to get into Q3 but again both drivers had great last laps and made it through. In Q3 we had to settle for P9 and P10 after an incident prohibited Alex to complete his final push lap and Franco made some small mistakes which prevented him from taking P8 from [Fernando] Alonso. Nevertheless, the team and the drivers can look back on a solid Qualifying and both are in a good position to fight for points in Baku."

Team Report: MoneyGram Haas F1 Team drivers Oliver Bearman and Nico Hulkenberg qualified 11th and 14th respectively for the Azerbaijan Grand Prix, Round 17 of the 2024 FIA Formula 1 World Championship – Bearman subbing at the Baku City Circuit for Kevin Magnussen as the Dane serves a one-race ban for accumulated penalty points.

P14. Nico Hulkenberg: “I think some other teams found a bit more pace out there than us, and it’s all about very fine margins once again in the midfield. On my side, I didn’t find enough lap time on that last run in Q2, I was struggling a bit in sector two to find the love and the harmony. We aimed for a better position but in Q2 we didn’t find enough improvement on the second set of new tires, hence we are where we are.”

P11. Oliver Bearman: “It was a tough session. I was firstly lucky to get into Q2 because there was a double yellow out there which I lost a lot of time with, but I managed to scrape through. We were really on the limit to get into Q3 if it wasn’t for the mistake I made in the castle section. I’m quite disappointed in myself, not necessarily for qualifying but for FP3 where I lost a lot of laps and experience. I felt really comfortable in the car yesterday on my high-fuel run, so I have high hopes for tomorrow.”

Ayao Komatsu, Team Principal: “I certainly have mixed feelings. Ollie’s recovery from FP3 was really good, and in Q1 on his second run he came across a yellow flag, so it was just enough to get through. What’s impressive is how he was able to reset after FP3 ahead of Q1, and also in-between Q1 and Q2, to then deliver like that. He’s kicking himself because he lost about three tenths on his second run in Q2, but after his FP3 session, to deliver P11 and getting so close to getting into Q3, he did such a good job. With Nico, he did a good job in Q1, but in Q2 he was struggling a bit because he doesn’t get on well with this track in terms of flow etc. I think he has a decent starting position, so tomorrow I’d like to think we can take the fight to Williams for a top 10 spot.”

P20. Esteban Ocon: “It’s not been a good weekend so far on my side. We had issues in Free Practice 1 and then in Free Practice 3 earlier today, which has really impacted our time on track. As a result, we’ve not had our usual preparation going into Qualifying so we entered it on the back foot. We could not get the car in the right window on set-up so I really had to push as much as I could to find some lap-time. On my last run we were improving a little – probably not enough to progress – and I tapped the wall. We will try to make the most of every opportunity tomorrow as it’s usually eventful at this track.”

P13. Pierre Gasly: “I’m pretty satisfied with the outcome of today’s Qualifying performance. It is obviously a pity that a minor fuel flow infringement means we are disqualified from the session. In any case, we expected to find it tough to reach Q2 as the car has been tricky all weekend, which has shown on the timesheets throughout Practice. I was very pleased with my laps in Qualifying and, even if the result doesn’t look spectacular, it was one of our most complete sessions of the season. The car has been sliding a lot, generally lacking rear grip, and we managed to improve that with some changes. We will have to stay calm in the race tomorrow and aim to be in the mix at the end. It’s usually a tough one here for racing and a lot can happen so we will give it our all from the back.”

Oliver Oakes, Team Principal: “Today was initially looking like a more promising day after the difficulties we faced during practice on Friday, where we struggled. Despite a great effort from Pierre to progress to the second part of Qualifying, he was later disqualified for exceeding the fuel mass flow on his final run in Q2, which is disappointing given the speed he showed. I have to say sorry to Esteban from the team, who entered the session on the back foot with his preparations severely hampered due to reliability issues in two of the three practice sessions. Looking ahead to the race tomorrow, the car seemed to improve each session and the pace looked more promising over the long runs. It’ll be a tough race from where we’re starting tomorrow. This track has shown in the past that opportunities can quickly present themselves to move up the order and we need to be there to capitalise on it.”

Team Report: "Stake F1 Team KICK Sauber played as a team in qualifying for the Azerbaijan Grand Prix, with drivers, Valtteri Bottas and Zhou Guanyu, working together in a session that reserved surprises until the closing stages. With Zhou assured of a back-of-the-grid start, owing to a planned change of power unit components resulting in a penalty, the Chinese driver gave team-mate Valtteri a useful tow on Baku’s long straights. The end result was a lot closer to our rivals, with Valtteri setting the 18th fastest time, ahead of Zhou in 19th."

P18. Valtteri Bottas: “It’s been another rather difficult qualifying session. We tried everything we could, even with teamwork: I got a nice tow from Zhou, which shows that he's a real team player, but unfortunately it still wasn't enough to get into Q2. We weren’t that far off from making the cut, although the lap itself wasn't quite perfect because of Turn Five. Apart from that, however, it was a clean one, and I think we also got it right with timing and strategy. Ultimately, we just weren't fast enough to make it to Q2 today. As always, though, tomorrow is a new day, and anything can happen in Baku.”

P19: Zhou Guanyu: "We knew I would be facing a penalty for Sunday, forcing me to start from the back of the grid, so we aimed to optimise the team’s overall result. My goal was to give Valtteri a slipstream to help him get as close as possible to Q2, which we practiced in FP3. However, this meant sacrificing my own performance, as my best lap was set on tyres that were two and a half laps old. Still, we need to improve our overall performance and move further forward to be in the mix. Looking ahead to tomorrow’s race from our current grid position – and knowing how unpredictable things can be in Baku – there may be opportunities to progress and gain some positions. We’ll need to be at our best to capitalise on them."

Alessandro Alunni Bravi, Team Representative: “Firstly, we would like to express our gratitude to Zhou. He has made concessions in both free practice and qualifying, sacrificing his sessions to provide the tow to Valtteri, which could have been crucial in allowing us to get at least one car into Q2. Of course, this will not change his own starting position for tomorrow’s race, as we elected to make changes to some power unit components on his car. We knew from this morning that he would be starting from the back of the grid because of this. However, this demonstrates our collective efforts to improve performance and take that necessary step forward. Regrettably, we were narrowly unable to advance Valtteri into Q2. The gap was truly small, but we do not lose hope. The starting positions are once again quite challenging for us, but we have observed that this circuit offers opportunities at every corner. Therefore, we must be prepared to react with our pit strategy. More than ever, we will have to come together as a team to deliver a strong performance, improving our starting position, and being ready to seize any opportunities that may arise during the race."