Oscar Piastri achieved his first career pole position in a closely contested qualifying session for the Chinese Grand Prix. He edged out Mercedes driver George Russell for the top spot by just 0.082 seconds.
Russell`s impressive lap, seemingly from nowhere, separated the two McLarens. Lando Norris will start in third place after abandoning his final attempt in the third qualifying round (Q3).
Piastri mentioned he struggled with his car`s balance during his Q3 lap. Despite this, he still managed to set two lap times that would have been sufficient for pole position, beating Russell. His fastest lap was 1:30.641.
Piastri commented on finding significant pace in Q3 after struggling in earlier sessions. He described his final lap as “a little bit scruffy” but expressed his excitement about securing pole position.
Regarding the track surface and tire management, Piastri noted the track`s challenging nature, leading to many “snaps and moments” throughout the weekend. However, he acknowledged the thrill of achieving a fast lap in Shanghai.
Russell revealed he experimented with a “completely different” tire preparation strategy for his last Q3 attempt. This approach enabled him to surpass Norris by 0.070 seconds and claim second place.
Earlier in the week, Russell suggested McLaren had a greater performance advantage than Red Bull had during their dominant period. However, his qualifying performance seemed to contradict this.
Reigning champion Max Verstappen qualified fourth for Red Bull, ahead of his teammate Lewis Hamilton, who was fifth fastest. Ferrari`s Charles Leclerc will start sixth.
Hamilton appeared dominant in the sprint race earlier on Saturday, but his performance seemed to diminish in the afternoon qualifying. This occurred after teams adjusted their setups.
Leclerc finished just 0.094 seconds behind his Ferrari teammate and secured sixth place, followed by an impressive performance from Racing Bulls rookie Isack Hadjar.
Andrea Kimi Antonelli, another rookie, qualified eighth, ahead of Yuki Tsunoda of Racing Bulls in ninth, and Alex Albon of Williams in tenth.
Esteban Ocon narrowly missed Q3, achieving 11th place, his best result for Haas this season. He will start ahead of Nico Hulkenberg of Sauber, and the Aston Martin drivers Fernando Alonso and Lance Stroll in 13th and 14th respectively. Carlos Sainz will start 15th for Williams.
Pierre Gasly of Alpine missed Q2 by a small margin and will start 16th, followed by Haas driver Oliver Bearman and Jack Doohan of Alpine in 18th.
Sauber rookie Gabriel Bortoleto qualified 19th, ahead of Liam Lawson of Red Bull, who qualified last and failed to advance from Q1 for the third time this season.
Lawson was over a second slower than the fastest time in Q1, increasing pressure on him in his second race as Verstappen`s teammate.
Lawson was overtaken by Pierre Gasly during his outlap, potentially affecting his final flying lap preparation. However, his overall performance remained consistent with his struggles as a Red Bull driver.
Rupert Caldwell 
Tristan Blackwood