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Formula 1 Season 2025 Episode 105

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Transcript
00:00:00On paper, it should be straightforward, but because of the altitude, the cars are going to be moving around.
00:00:05They're not going to have the downforce. It's going to be a real test.
00:00:09It's a fantastic place to watch Formula One qualifying if you're in a stadio, the stadium section, driving straight through the middle.
00:00:17And let's look at the driver's championship on the right-hand side.
00:00:20Max Verstappen, 40 points back. The driver you're looking at, well, Lando Norris, just 14 back in the hunt of Oscar Piastri,
00:00:28the championship leader since April at the end of the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix.
00:00:33Every weekend has the potential to be a big weekend now.
00:00:36Austin was. It didn't go the way of McLaren. It didn't go the way, certainly, of Oscar Piastri, who's struggled for form.
00:00:43And he's been struggling for form again so far through all three free practices, which he has done.
00:00:49Both Lando Norris and Max Verstappen gave way in FP1 for rookie drivers to drive, but they've got back in.
00:00:54But Verstappen topped FP2, looked good straight away, made changes with the car overnight.
00:00:59Didn't look as comfortable in FP3 earlier, but Norris did, and he topped that session.
00:01:04We think Verstappen has reverted on the setup back to what he ran or closer to what he ran yesterday.
00:01:10So Verstappen could be comfortable. Norris looked quick.
00:01:14Piastri's been on the back foot, the championship leader, so far.
00:01:16Yeah, not had the ultimate pace of both of his rivals.
00:01:21Friday was definitely the day for Max Verstappen, but he wasn't happy with the race pace.
00:01:25That's why they were experimenting deep into practice in a way that you wouldn't always see.
00:01:31It's worth saying that the track evolution is going to be high for this circuit.
00:01:35It is dusty off the racing line, and it means that any wide moment, you'll be slewing wide, losing time, and needing another lap.
00:01:44It is worth saying with the tyres, they are good enough for a couple of push laps, and that could be vital.
00:01:49One of the shortest laps on the calendar, this 4.3 kilometres.
00:01:52It's a short lap in terms of distance, but also time.
00:01:561.16 set by Lando Norris earlier on.
00:02:00And that means, particularly in Q1, it is going to be difficult for everyone to get out of the way of drivers on fast laps.
00:02:07Particularly if you're in title contention, you cannot afford to be impeding anyone.
00:02:11It's a difficult circuit to jump out of the way after you go through the first few corners as well, the end of the first sector.
00:02:16Because it is a lot of corners with not a lot of straights, so communication has to be crystal clear as well as we head into Q1.
00:02:25Green light at the end of the pit lane.
00:02:27Cars slowly meandering onto the circuit.
00:02:30This is going to be a big talking point for tomorrow, but great to show you now the long run down to the braking zone.
00:02:36It's provided plenty of drama, especially in championship connotations.
00:02:402016, Lewis Hamilton having to scamper over the road.
00:02:44Got away with that one and put the pressure on Nico Rosberg, who would eventually take the title.
00:02:50Max Verstappen able to climb into the race lead.
00:02:53It was so important back in 2021 as well in championship connotations.
00:02:59You're looking at the four-time champion trying to score an audacious fifth when it didn't look likely after the summer break when he was 104 points back.
00:03:09Well, he's whittled away that advantage.
00:03:11Pole position today would certainly help him continue.
00:03:13What has been a superlative run?
00:03:16Can he keep it going?
00:03:17Track temperature is 48 degrees.
00:03:19The air temperature is 26.
00:03:22Fernando Alonso on circuit.
00:03:24The Aston Martin car suited to bolting on all the downforce available, and that's what we've got this weekend.
00:03:30Fernando missed some crucial running in practice earlier on, so he's out there very early on the green light.
00:03:36To make the most of this, get up to speed on a soft tire today.
00:03:41Lance Stral is just ahead of him.
00:03:42He's the only car ahead of him on the road.
00:03:44The two Astons on the softs winding it up early on.
00:03:47The main protagonists all waiting in the pits, and that is because, you've already mentioned it, the track evolution will be really high in this session.
00:03:54And they're going to wait and let the theoretically slower cars clean up the circuit.
00:03:59It's going to start with Lance Stral.
00:04:01Stral has had a qualifying crash around here in the final corner in the past.
00:04:06It's very easy to do.
00:04:08The car's light, and you're going to see them moving around more than you normally would.
00:04:13Certainly under traction, coming out of turn three, and we've seen plenty of moments as well coming out of turn five.
00:04:19It's where we're heading right now.
00:04:20Yeah, that's going by as a camp with Stral.
00:04:22Really low speed, second gear, little burst and an upshift before you take another downshift and pick second for a difficult traction zone.
00:04:30Up towards this faster sequence then in the middle sector.
00:04:33Turn seven, a left-hander threading your way through, riding the kerb through eight and nine.
00:04:37Bring it back to the left-hand side for the trickiest part, which is turn 10, and it threads you through 11,
00:04:44where you can open the DRS and head on the short burst towards the final sector.
00:04:48Really low speed in here.
00:04:50You can approach with something into 12 and then take it all off the turn 13.
00:04:54180 degrees through a stadio.
00:04:56Bounce over the kerbs on the exit, and you've got the final corner, really, turn 16.
00:05:01Stay away from that wall on the outside that can be inviting.
00:05:05It's slippery up close to it as well.
00:05:07Well, Stral does the tighter exit, narrows the distance, and closes the lap.
00:05:12You're going to see that more and more, but you're also going to see that being a dusty part of the racetrack.
00:05:17Alonso over the line, he's eight tenths of a second quicker, running at the same time as his teammate.
00:05:22He's outqualified his teammate in every single Grand Prix qualifying session so far this year.
00:05:27You can see from these early onboards as well how difficult it is to get out of the way,
00:05:31because it is corner after corner after corner after corner.
00:05:34Colopinto coming to the end of his lap in the Alpine.
00:05:37Behrman, you can see, is going to be blasting past all of these guys.
00:05:40Colopinto will do well to get out of Q1.
00:05:43It seems Alpine having a really difficult run through practice so far.
00:05:47Bit of team order shenanigans at the end of the last Grand Prix.
00:05:50Colopinto overtaking Gasly when he shouldn't have done.
00:05:53But he's actually been competitive with Gasly recently.
00:05:55He's outqualified him in four of the last six qualifying sessions.
00:05:58Yeah, 8.5 to Gasly across the time that they have been teammates.
00:06:03He was a mid-season replacement in for Jack Doohan, yet to score a point so far this year.
00:06:08Franco Colopinto fighting to secure a contract for 2026.
00:06:13They were running Paul Aaron, who's part of their young driver program, part of the reserve driver set up at Alpine by way of comparison in FP1.
00:06:23First lap time deleted is for Gabriel Bortoleto, who's gone off at turn 12.
00:06:27That's coming into the stadium section, and that will not be the fast way to go.
00:06:31But it's interesting to see the apexes of turns two and three as well.
00:06:35It is possible to lump so much kerb you actually cut the corner.
00:06:39The drivers are going to have to be vigilant not to do that.
00:06:41We're through there with Lando Norris, who's quicker than his teammate in the first part of the lap.
00:06:45Four tenths of a second, so it's a scruffy start once again for Piastri on this lap.
00:06:51Norris threading it through 8 and 9, bringing it back to 10.
00:06:54The right-hander taking a bit of apex kerb, opening it up, using the kerbs at 11 as well.
00:06:59And it looked neat and tidy through there.
00:07:01Lando Norris hasn't scored a pole position since the Belgian Grand Prix, but he was fastest in FP3.
00:07:07FP3, four poles this year for the British driver, chasing his first championship, bouncing over the kerbs.
00:07:14And like many drivers are reporting on the radio, I'm informed, struggling for grip right now.
00:07:19Remember, it will ramp up across the session.
00:07:21He's six tenths of a second ahead of Oliver Behrman, who's in a rich vein of form, looking for a third.
00:07:27Can sit to top ten start today, on board with the championship leader, who is working the wheel when applying the power.
00:07:33And to show you how much he was struggling, he's behind Oliver Behrman.
00:07:36Struggle City for Piastri is well adrift in all the sectors.
00:07:42There's a golf in the first sector, four tenths.
00:07:44There's another over two tenths in the middle and a little bit more on top in the final part of the lap.
00:07:50He's just been struggling for confidence, struggling for grip, but he's behind a half.
00:07:53He's now behind a Williams.
00:07:55Yeah, and for context, that's the championship leader behind Oliver Behrman,
00:07:59who's 18th from the points coming in to this Grand Prix weekend.
00:08:03Charles Leclerc moving around a lot, but finding a competitive time.
00:08:06He is second fastest.
00:08:08And something to watch out for here is Piastri may well have to burn through another set of tyres at this rate,
00:08:13just to make it through into Q2.
00:08:15He's been really struggling for outright pace so far.
00:08:19These soft tyres will go again.
00:08:20They'll be able to do a slow lap and another push.
00:08:22That's why they've gone with still 12 minutes, give or take, left on the clock.
00:08:26The track is ramping up, Hadjar improves, Lawson improves beyond that as well.
00:08:31And Piastri's early benchmark will not be enough, nor will Lewis Hamilton do just behind him.
00:08:36We're heading into turn 12, over the kerb and skateboarding over the kerb,
00:08:40as the kerb height is higher than the clearance of the car.
00:08:43This is what it looked like, scraping down it at turn 12.
00:08:46Nice grind.
00:08:48Grind on the railing, on the kerb, for Lewis Hamilton, skateboard style.
00:08:53This is Portolecto who's going to go over track limits in the same part of the circuit into 12.
00:08:57Whoa, massive front double lock-up.
00:09:00He's actually only just over track limits, considering how smoky that was on the entry,
00:09:04but picking the brakes too late.
00:09:05And again, the track grip's starting, really not in a good window.
00:09:10So the evolution, particularly in Q1, is going to be massive.
00:09:13Here's Verstappen.
00:09:14Got to find the progress all the time.
00:09:16Here's Max Verstappen in brilliant form right now.
00:09:19Pole position in Italy, pole position in Baku, the front row in Singapore,
00:09:23and pole position last time out, the Grand Prix of the United States.
00:09:27He is looking to get up and running.
00:09:29You've got to progress with your lap times all the way through this session,
00:09:33due to the fact the track will be rubbering in with every lap that we run.
00:09:37Double apex of turn six, cleanly negotiated.
00:09:41Through seven, the Red Bull ride in the kerb, OK, on the apex of eight.
00:09:44It's not so good at nine as he has a big snap of oversteer.
00:09:47Now it's getting scrappy with the rear temps overheating as well.
00:09:51In sharp contrast to how good that car looked yesterday
00:09:54when it seemed to be on rails through there,
00:09:56you could see how much Max Verstappen was chasing it.
00:09:59When it works, you've glued to the road, it all flows together as one seat.
00:10:05Seven to 11, when you're chasing it, it seems to take an age.
00:10:09Verstappen, not happy, certainly not compared to what we saw yesterday.
00:10:13He's in the third position.
00:10:14I cannot believe he's that quick considering the mistakes.
00:10:17It's almost encouraging from Verstappen that he can be that loose
00:10:21through the middle sector and be just one and a half tenths down from Norris.
00:10:24Tsunoda's done a handy time as well in the other car, up in seventh place.
00:10:28Fastest final section of the session so far for Max Verstappen.
00:10:32Over the line we go with Kimi Antonelli, goes into P6 right now.
00:10:36Track a long way back, though, from the pace that we saw in FP3.
00:10:40Here's George Russell.
00:10:42Wasn't happy to miss out on the front row one week ago.
00:10:44By less than a tenth of a second.
00:10:46And he's P2 at the moment.
00:10:48Bottom five go out when the chequered flag waves at the end of Q1.
00:10:53If you're one of our newer viewers, currently occupied by Ocon Colopinto,
00:10:57Stroll, Gasly and Gabriel Bortoletto, who made the mistake at Turn 12.
00:11:02Let's go on board with the reigning world champion.
00:11:08It's just a little bump through the apex of Turn 9.
00:11:12See the car almost bouncing very slightly as he comes through there.
00:11:16Tenth and a half loss.
00:11:16And I'm amazed it's not more.
00:11:18That must be in that individual part of the five-corner sequence.
00:11:22But then it's stayed loose through turns 10 and 11 as well.
00:11:26He did then do the best final sector of the session by a margin as well.
00:11:29So there's pace in there for Verstappen,
00:11:31if a little bit of driver talent needed to keep it on the road.
00:11:35Stroll has improved.
00:11:36He's gone up to 13th position.
00:11:38Alonso is on another push lap now.
00:11:40Behrman goes top to show you how much the track is rubbering in.
00:11:44And Piastri now has done a much better first sector this time.
00:11:48It's still two tenths down on Norris's fastest of the session in the first sector.
00:11:52He's going again.
00:11:53And he's 13th.
00:11:54Hamilton went skating on the first lap.
00:11:56He's 15th now as well.
00:11:58We've got eight minutes left.
00:11:59And Hamilton is now dropped to the bottom five, but is also out there improving.
00:12:05It shows how quickly these laps block up and the time ticks down.
00:12:09Piastri has to get something on the board on this set of tyres.
00:12:12He said Behrman was confident in Formula One qualifying at the moment.
00:12:16That's a lap that's taken him ahead.
00:12:18And we're on board with Oscar Piastri.
00:12:21Reclaiming P1 is Lando Norris.
00:12:23He's two tenths of a second ahead of Behrman.
00:12:25Then it's Russell Leclerc.
00:12:26Verstappen signs.
00:12:28Ocon, Alonso, Lawson, Antonelli, Hadjar, Gasly, Tsunoda, Colopinto.
00:12:33And the man who was in the elimination zone is now P3, is Oscar Piastri.
00:12:37But still, after two runs, he's behind Oliver Behrman.
00:12:41Yeah, it's a better lap from Piastri.
00:12:43But you've got to say, an amazing lap from Behrman now to be ahead.
00:12:46He's absolutely flying at the moment, isn't he, Behrman?
00:12:49Off the back of a rapid Austin.
00:12:51Haas bringing some upgrades.
00:12:52The car worked well.
00:12:53Leclerc gets ahead of Behrman.
00:12:55But by less than a tenth, that's a stonking start to this qualifying session for Molly Behrman.
00:13:00Not the lap time that Hülkenberg was looking for.
00:13:02He's in 18th position.
00:13:04Tsunoda in the pits right now in the drop zone along with Franco Colopinto.
00:13:08That's Hülkenberg.
00:13:09Alex Albin's currently on the out lap.
00:13:10Lance Stroll, who went first, is down in P20.
00:13:14The top of the pile, Norris, Leclerc, Behrman, Piastri, Russell, Hamilton.
00:13:20And in seventh place, Max Verstappen.
00:13:22So both Red Bulls pitted up just one flying lap on the tyres.
00:13:26Both Mercedes did the same.
00:13:29As did the Williams.
00:13:33The other drivers all stayed out there for a second flyer and found a good chunk of time on that second lap
00:13:38as the track got better.
00:13:39They'll have had to carry the fuel for an extra lap of pushing and a slow lap in between as well.
00:13:46So an extra couple of laps of fuel to get round for it.
00:13:51There's a bit of a penalty in that.
00:13:54Tenth of the second.
00:13:55Yuki Tsunoda fighting for his Formula 1 future, trying to stay part of any Red Bull programme.
00:14:02Currently with the senior team, junior team have to decide who they're going to run.
00:14:06They had Arvid Lindblad currently in Formula 2.
00:14:11It was P6 in FP1, taking over Max Verstappen's car.
00:14:15Max Verstappen thanking him afterwards for keeping it in one piece.
00:14:18That's a pressure that Lindblad would have been feeling intensely.
00:14:21Now, important lap for a man who really struggled in final practice.
00:14:26Alex Albin had a couple of lock-ups in Turn 13 and was off the racetrack at the corner.
00:14:31He's just gone round.
00:14:32That's Turn 4.
00:14:33Can he find his way to the top 50?
00:14:35Williams generally struggling to stop their car in today's running.
00:14:39Particularly Albin with the front lock-ups for Sainz as well at the end of the session.
00:14:43Had a big, meaty front lock-up at Turn 1.
00:14:46The bogey corners for Albin have been in the final sector.
00:14:49He hit the wall in FP1 at 16.
00:14:52He's been locking up at Turn 13.
00:14:55That's where we're heading to now.
00:14:56And this is rapid through the first two sectors for Albin, who needs to dig something out.
00:15:00He's in 19th place.
00:15:01His Turn 13, he's got it stopped.
00:15:03He's rotated the car through without a lock-up.
00:15:06Just having to wrestle the car through 14 and 15.
00:15:10The grip not looking like it's coming to him that well on this first lap on a soft tyre.
00:15:14And up he goes to 13th.
00:15:16That won't be good enough by the time everyone else bolts on softs and looks to improve.
00:15:21Having a really tough run of it.
00:15:22Hasn't scored points in the last three Grand Prix and has lined up 19th, 20th and 18th in the last three races.
00:15:30He'll be able to go again, though.
00:15:31He's got time.
00:15:32Williams have given themselves plenty of buffer time for a cool, a recharge and a go again.
00:15:38And we have seen the tyres stay in nicely for a second flyer.
00:15:42Hajar doing likewise down in 15th.
00:15:44The driver who hit the barrier in Q1 a week ago in Austin qualifying was furious with himself.
00:15:50And you can understand why.
00:15:51He's got the best starting position this season.
00:15:53A fourth in his rookie campaign.
00:15:54We've got his teammate, Liam Lawson, going through the same sequence of corners that you've just watched Hajar negotiate from the helicopter.
00:16:02Hajar on the podium in Zandvoort looking to return to Q3 today.
00:16:06That is the aim.
00:16:07We've got four minutes to go.
00:16:08He's set the fastest middle sector of anyone so far.
00:16:11Lawson not too far behind Norris' benchmark.
00:16:14It shows you again there's going to be a big step forward here.
00:16:17Hajar is fastest.
00:16:18And you've got to find your best lap at the end of the session.
00:16:22It shows how stodgy Albert's lap was as the racing bulls are going to launch themselves right up to the top of the times.
00:16:27It's quickest for Hajar.
00:16:28It's third for Lawson.
00:16:30And that should see them safely through.
00:16:33But you hate to have a guess right now because of the way that cars are finding heaps of time overall.
00:16:37Verstappen has just done one flying lap so far in the session.
00:16:40He's stayed on this original set of tyres.
00:16:43He's been through the pits.
00:16:44And this is lap two.
00:16:46The tyres are good enough to go for multiple flying laps around the circuit.
00:16:51We've seen that earlier on.
00:16:53Verstappen is up on Isaac Hajar.
00:16:55Could be Max Verstappen's teammate for next year.
00:16:58Plenty of paddock whispers pointing in that direction.
00:17:02Through four, five and six we go.
00:17:04Kimi Antonelli getting out of the way.
00:17:06And this is the sequence of corners that did not go to plan last time.
00:17:09Oh, he's again on the bumps through nine.
00:17:16He's a little bit later on.
00:17:17He's taken another couple of bumps out of it before it started to get loose for him.
00:17:21And he's down on Hajar by a tenth and a half.
00:17:23It looks difficult to drive in that higher speed section.
00:17:26The car looks very, very stiff.
00:17:27Left-hand side, Yuki Tsunoda is negotiating that part of the track as well.
00:17:31He's on for a personal best.
00:17:32He needs a personal best.
00:17:34He's currently down in 17th position.
00:17:36So he's had to go for new tyres.
00:17:38Verstappen will save the set for later on with this lap.
00:17:41Over the line to P5 for the reigning world champion.
00:17:44Now Yuki Tsunoda trying to use all of the grip from these new tyres that he's fixed at the car for this final run.
00:17:51Two minutes to go.
00:17:53He comes over the line and gets up to ninth position.
00:17:55It's Antonelli now.
00:17:57Been having a great weekend up until now.
00:17:59In 16th, then the two Alpines, Hülkenberg and Stroll currently in the drop zone.
00:18:05Pressure lap for the Italian teenager.
00:18:07Big time.
00:18:08He's been generally looking stronger and more consistent than George Russell so far this weekend.
00:18:13Again, had the FB1 to build up, whereas Russell was out of the car watching on from the sidelines at the start of the weekend as Frederick Vesti drove for Mercedes.
00:18:21Antonelli now has got to back up that practice form with qualifying heroics.
00:18:26And we're decent through the first sector.
00:18:28Quite a clout over that kerb at Turn 5.
00:18:31His low speed didn't upset the car too much.
00:18:34Unlike the corners we're heading to now as Fernando Alonso checks the mirrors and makes sure he jumps out of the way for the Mercedes.
00:18:40Alonso currently in 13th.
00:18:42Knows he will need to find another improvement as well.
00:18:46And he's at risk.
00:18:47Carlos Sainz going through the sweepers in the middle part of the lap.
00:18:50You can see the way that Verstappen's car is more aggressive over that bumpy section on the apex of Turn 9 than a lot of others through there.
00:18:57He's obviously quit around a lap.
00:18:59He's still been on used tyres for that time.
00:19:01But it looks a handful in that part of the circuit.
00:19:04Antonelli currently in the drop zone.
00:19:05Has made Q3 for the last four Grand Prix weekends in a row.
00:19:09Trying to continue that run.
00:19:10That's the minimum expected for a Mercedes driver.
00:19:13And he goes over the line into P11.
00:19:15Carlos Sainz, he's had good form in practice so far.
00:19:19The winner here last year goes into 8.
00:19:21Right, and now Antonelli's just crossing fingers because that's not exceptional from him.
00:19:25There are plenty of drivers further back trying to improve.
00:19:28Bortoleto, personal best.
00:19:29Driver currently in 15th.
00:19:31Gasly cannot jump out of the drop zone.
00:19:33Ocon out there as well.
00:19:35Albon will get another chance having come through the pitch to try and improve.
00:19:39Stroll's going to be gone.
00:19:40Reigning Formula 2 champion over the line to 14th.
00:19:44Alonso now at risk.
00:19:45Hülkenberg in the second selva.
00:19:47Final metres of the racetrack.
00:19:49Looks a good lap.
00:19:50Is a good lap.
00:19:50P11 for the selva driver.
00:19:52Ocon can jump ahead of Antonelli.
00:19:54He's going quickly.
00:19:55He's going very quickly.
00:19:56P3 for Esteban Ocon.
00:19:58Man, did he need that lap.
00:20:00He got it.
00:20:00So it's Albon and Alonso in the drop zone who are still pushing.
00:20:04And Albon's looking very good right at the start of his lap now.
00:20:09Pressure lap for Alex Albon.
00:20:10Doesn't want this really tough running qualifying to continue.
00:20:13Second place for George Russell.
00:20:15Albon up on Bortoleto's benchmark in the first sector.
00:20:19Alonso only needs a tenth as well.
00:20:21His first sector's not great, but he's found a personal best in the middle.
00:20:24Hamilton up to second position.
00:20:26It's still Hadja who's top of the pile.
00:20:29On board with the Williams driver.
00:20:31And he's got traffic in the way.
00:20:32That's distracting at the least.
00:20:34He goes to the high-speed stuff.
00:20:36Can he find a lap time to eliminate Gabriel Bortoleto?
00:20:39Alonso finds a lap time to eliminate Gabriel Bortoleto.
00:20:43It's Albon in 17th trying to escape.
00:20:46Antonelli is the driver at risk.
00:20:48All on this bogey final sector for Albon who's got well across that apex curve at 12.
00:20:53Can he stop it at 13?
00:20:54Just about.
00:20:55Pulls it back for a late apex.
00:20:57Better the throttle over the curbs.
00:20:59And it's all on this exit.
00:21:01It's got to be clean out of the final corner.
00:21:03Albon looks to his steering wheel.
00:21:05Does he make it?
00:21:06The answer is no.
00:21:08And the terrible form in qualifying continues.
00:21:12Such a star in races this year.
00:21:15But Alex Albon can't find an improvement when it matters.
00:21:18And Kimi Antonelli breathes again.
00:21:21Antonelli gets by in 15th.
00:21:23It's Bortoleto, Albon, Gasly, Stroll, and this man, Franco Colopinto, who are out in the first part of qualifying.
00:21:32Colopinto nailed across this curve more than anyone through the weekend.
00:21:35He's launched his car.
00:21:36Yeah, proper launch over the raised ridge there.
00:21:39And he parked it up before he had the chance to complete the lap at the end of that one.
00:21:44I'd said Antonelli had to cross his fingers.
00:21:45It was pretty much that in the end, wasn't it?
00:21:4715th place, squeezes through Albon, the lap time going away from him after a good first second.
00:21:54You can just see him fighting the car.
00:21:56Hasn't looked that comfortable.
00:21:57He's three tenths down on his teammate.
00:22:00That's going to be a lot of disappointment for Williams.
00:22:02A lot of disappointment.
00:22:03No points in the last three Grand Prix.
00:22:05One of the stars of the season, sitting eighth in the championship.
00:22:1073 points for a Williams driver in the last five years.
00:22:14Outstanding, but he's out.
00:22:15The brakes aren't working at all.
00:22:18I am smashing the brakes as long as I can into turn one.
00:22:22Turn forward.
00:22:24A continuation of a problem that we saw in practice doesn't sound like it was fixed for Alex Albon.
00:22:29That explains it.
00:22:31It sounds like he's just not getting the bite from the pedal.
00:22:33So you hit your brakes.
00:22:35You basically, as you're coming up to one of these big stops, smash your left foot as hard as you can.
00:22:40It's a very solid pedal.
00:22:42About 130 bar of pressure is what you're looking for.
00:22:45And you then feel yourself just literally the retardation in the car.
00:22:51You're up against your belt.
00:22:52The car's stopping so quickly.
00:22:53But when you're not feeling that deceleration, of course, it's low downforce.
00:22:57The air's thin.
00:22:58The brakes will work slightly differently, but they're also not slowed down that much because we're on the lowest downforce effective of the season because of the thin air.
00:23:07You don't get that same feeling.
00:23:09And it changes the whole way that you approach the corner when you're not feeling the absolute squirm of the car under that brake pedal.
00:23:17Well, for Alex Albon, a third Q1 elimination in the last four race weekends, that is a shock for a driver who's been so strong in the earlier part of the year.
00:23:26Lance Stroll finds himself at the 14th Q1 elimination in the 20 Grand Prix qualifying sessions that we've run this year.
00:23:35And Piastri ended up through, but needing to run on a new set of tyres at the end there.
00:23:43He didn't put a lap on them.
00:23:44He will start Q2, I imagine, on the same set.
00:23:47Nonetheless, it is a heat cycle for Oscar Piastri, who ended up 10th in that one.
00:23:52Pajar topped the session, then Lewis Hamilton, George Russell, Nando Norris, and Esteban Ocon, the top five.
00:24:03Heading out in the bottom five, Borgleto, Albon, Gazzee Stroll, and Colopinto for more analysis.
00:24:08Let's send it to the paddock with James and Ruth.
00:24:11Well, guys, what a session already in Q1.
00:24:14I'm not sure who had P1 in that one on their bingo cards.
00:24:17We'll get to him in a minute, but Ruth, I want to start with Red Bull and Max Verstappen.
00:24:21And it looked like Max really was wrestling with that race car through that middle sector.
00:24:25Yeah, so he had an oversteer moment, turn three, another one in turn nine, losing 0.11, 0.18, respectively, just in those two corners alone.
00:24:34But they're so brave, Red Bull.
00:24:35So not only do they go out late with one lap of fuel, which means they're saving around 0.15 compared to the McLarens that took three extra laps of fuel.
00:24:44They then go out on a used set of tyres just to do one extra lap and park it with six minutes to go in a session.
00:24:51But it's absolutely phenomenal.
00:24:52And even on that fast lap that he's doing right now again, he had another moment in turn 10.
00:24:57It's tricky conditions out there, even for drivers that are rather good, like Max.
00:25:01Yeah, he's not bad, is he?
00:25:02I mean, can the team make the kind of strategies being played here?
00:25:04Because one driver not as confident right now, Oscar Piastri, McLaren having to roll the dice a little bit with the championship leader.
00:25:10Yeah, so we know McLaren, they love to be conservative, which has fared them well.
00:25:14They took four laps of fuel, so push, double call, push on the first run.
00:25:18But then what was really interesting, second run, Lando went out on a used set, so matched to Max, his championship rival, with Oscar.
00:25:26He was struggling a lot, lost most of that time in his first run in turn nine alone.
00:25:30But then he used another new set.
00:25:32So going into Q2, he is now down one set.
00:25:34He's going to have to make that up either in Q2 or go into the Q3 shootout with one fewer set than his rivals.
00:25:39Yeah, either way, it's not a great look, is it, immediately, for Oscar Piastri up against it as we head into Q2.
00:25:45And as we do that, let's head back up to the booth.
00:25:47Thank you, James. Thank you, Ruth.
00:25:50We are ready for the next part of qualifying, and I'm really looking forward to this.
00:25:55Because it could be comically close.
00:25:58If we look at the evidence of FP3, it was mighty tight at different stages throughout that session,
00:26:05with the pressure of improving later on, and we've seen it there at the end of Q1,
00:26:11when Antonelli, who has looked really good, general feel across three hours of practice,
00:26:15he's been very, very strong, and yet finds himself scraping through in the end right on the bubble.
00:26:22But he did make it through. He's part of the 15th, still in contention.
00:26:25And he found a tenth.
00:26:26He's up with Piastri in tenth.
00:26:28That's how close it is. The whole field within a second.
00:26:32Always a pleasure to see in a Q1 session.
00:26:35We didn't see the main contenders go out on a second new set of tyres.
00:26:39So that's why Hadjar ended up quickest.
00:26:41It's why Hamilton joined him at the top as well, putting on a new set of tyres.
00:26:46Piastri did put on a new set of tyres, but the team told him he didn't need to do too much on them.
00:26:51So he went down, started the flyer, just in case he needed to improve, and then backed off it.
00:26:57So he won't have taken too much rubber off them, and he will go again, presumably at the first part of Q2 on that.
00:27:03...on the podium. Any of the last three Grand Prix, it is his longest streak away from the podium since a four-race run.
00:27:21USA, this venue this time last year, as well as a wet Brazil and Las Vegas.
00:27:27Haas look awesome.
00:27:29They do, if you consider that on average this year, they're the 16th and 18th best qualifiers in the field.
00:27:37Oliver Behrman, the 16th. Estevan Ocon, the 18th.
00:27:41Both have been as high as P8 on the grid at various different points this year.
00:27:45Can you mention, as they were coming in, the lifetimes, Behrman quicker than Piastri in those early stages.
00:27:51Ocon ended up putting on a new set of boots and found a load of time to go up to fifth as well.
00:27:55Well, Hadjar's obviously been outstanding in the Racing Bulls to top that first part.
00:27:59Lawson safely through.
00:28:00This is a day where midfielders can do something special.
00:28:06Hülkenberg for the sprint in Austin was up in fourth.
00:28:08It feels like there could be a giant killing of that proportion.
00:28:11So then, if you're a giant, you've got to be worried about being killed in this one.
00:28:17With the midfielders all thinking they could score a good haul of points.
00:28:20Remember, construct the championship positions.
00:28:23The points make such a big difference to them at the end.
00:28:26Haas would love to get a good score.
00:28:29They're 11 points away from Sauber ahead.
00:28:31Sauber have got a good chance.
00:28:32Still with Hülkenberg in it.
00:28:34Racing Bulls need to hold off Aston Martin.
00:28:36There's only three points there.
00:28:37All of that gaggle are in a big battle.
00:28:39They don't care about this Drivers' Championship.
00:28:41They just want to score many points.
00:28:42No, they're just swinging for the fences in these qualifying sessions.
00:28:47Nothing to worry about.
00:28:48Ocon and Behrman know they're continuing with the team.
00:28:51Oliver Behrman will start his 23rd Grand Prix tomorrow.
00:28:55He's in strong form.
00:28:56And you don't want to do the thing where you look great in Q1
00:28:59and then you find yourself out of the poor lap in Q2.
00:29:02You want to progress it all the way through.
00:29:03A reminder for you, Oliver Behrman chasing a third consecutive start in the top ten.
00:29:08For the first time in his Formula 1 career today.
00:29:10I find that tends to be a bit of a rookie special sometimes.
00:29:13You look brilliant in Q1 and then don't find any significant improvement
00:29:17as the track wraps up and your rivals all manage to find small tweaks and fine-tuning
00:29:21and you end up suddenly like, how am I out?
00:29:23This was looking so good.
00:29:25Same thing goes from Q2 into Q3.
00:29:26It's the sort of thing you don't have in Formula 2.
00:29:30You have one qualifying session, you give it everything and then that's it.
00:29:33Here, it's all restarted.
00:29:35The time that you have had on the board counts for Zippo apart from the fact you're still in
00:29:38and you've got to go and do the same but better.
00:29:42Isaac Hadjar with the grippy second set.
00:29:46Very happy with his run.
00:29:47Topping the session.
00:29:48The first racing bulls driver to the top.
00:29:50Any session of any description so far this year.
00:29:53Going out very early once more to get a time on the board.
00:29:57Charles Leclerc again showing how hard it is to get out of the way of other people there.
00:30:01Just getting completely off the road.
00:30:02Almost coming to a standstill to allow Hadjar through.
00:30:05Flashing past the middle sector.
00:30:07Tricky part.
00:30:08Turn nine where Verstappen's caught himself out.
00:30:10But I still don't see any other car struggling on the bumps like Max is there.
00:30:13It is his rookie season in Formula 1, Isaac Hadjar, but he has had an FP1 around this circuit in the past.
00:30:19A useful reference for the driver who graduated as runner-up from the Formula 2 championship last year.
00:30:26This time, one year ago, he didn't know he was getting promoted to Formula 1.
00:30:30What a journey he's been on.
00:30:32He's even got a couple of trophies from the Zandvoort podium.
00:30:34One he broke and one he was given a week later.
00:30:3717-1, the time that he puts on the board.
00:30:39We immediately switch to Lewis Hamilton, who's heading to Turn 4.
00:30:43Picks the brakes hard.
00:30:44Another one of those big stops.
00:30:45DRS into it.
00:30:47Slow it down.
00:30:4840 miles per hour through the apex of Turn 5, which is the slowest corner.
00:30:52But this one, just about 50 miles per hour, in fact.
00:30:56They're almost the same through 5 and 6.
00:31:01Car looking a little bit on edge through Turn 7.
00:31:05Dance it through 10.
00:31:07Fighting the car once again on the exit of 11.
00:31:09This is the same set of tyres that Lewis ran on in Q1.
00:31:13So, he's not quite getting the same grip.
00:31:14Hadjar put on another new set.
00:31:16Hamilton didn't.
00:31:17So, he's trying to save as well, thinking of Q3 coming up through the very tight Turn 13.
00:31:24On pole position.
00:31:25On one occasion around here.
00:31:27Back in 2016, when he went wheel-to-wheel with his rival for the title into the first turn.
00:31:32Went over the road.
00:31:33Hülkenberg, then Hamilton, and Hadjar.
00:31:36Alonso is fourth in the order.
00:31:39We go around the final corner with Max Verstappen.
00:31:41Dutch driver over the line with the fastest time.
00:31:44Nearly two tenths of a second ahead of Hülkenberg.
00:31:47Well, that's new tyres for Verstappen.
00:31:49It's not an absolute headline time, I have to say.
00:31:52He's slower than Hadjar did in Q1.
00:31:56Strange one.
00:31:57As we see Charles Leclerc go over the line with the fastest time.
00:32:01Driver, who was running second last year before he had an error.
00:32:05And let through this man who eventually finished P2.
00:32:08Great first sector for Lando Knox.
00:32:10A massive first sector from Norris.
00:32:12Car's obviously working in a straight line.
00:32:14He's obviously got good traction coming out of Turn 3 and braking ability in that one.
00:32:18Already had the fastest first sector.
00:32:19He's just beaten it by another tenth and a half to go clear now of Charles Leclerc in that part.
00:32:24Again, you can see the ride quality.
00:32:26The McLaren is so much better than that of Verstappen's Red Bull.
00:32:30And Norris is able to squeeze on the power nice and cleanly on the exit of Turn 11.
00:32:34Now we hit the brakes for Turn 12.
00:32:36Get towards an apex.
00:32:37Don't lock the curb because it will unsettle you towards the exit.
00:32:40He's clean.
00:32:41He's on the brink of a lock-up on the left front at 13.
00:32:43But it's nicely through on the limit of the braking capability at the low speed.
00:32:48Beads on the gas.
00:32:49No hint of a correction out of the final corner.
00:32:52And Norris is starting to dial in.
00:32:53Four tenths of a second at the head of the field.
00:32:57Let's get a like-for-like comparison with the man he's trying to take the championship lead away from.
00:33:02Over the line goes Oscar Piastri.
00:33:04And he is a second away.
00:33:06So that is his scrubbed set of tyres.
00:33:09It's still a massive golf.
00:33:11When you think Hamilton's just done a lap on a set of tyres that have done a full lap.
00:33:15Piastri's have just had a heat cycle.
00:33:17And he tumbles down to tenth place.
00:33:19He's in big trouble so far.
00:33:21Russell goes ahead of him.
00:33:24Antonelli finds himself in 14th.
00:33:26That's got to be a new set for Antonelli.
00:33:28And we go over the turn four line with Liam Lawson.
00:33:33Yeah.
00:33:33In deep on the limit of that rear grip.
00:33:38Turned it in.
00:33:39And just it wasn't sticky.
00:33:40You can see as soon as he gets offline the dust picks up as well.
00:33:43So that's Lawson over Ambition.
00:33:45Antonelli was actually on new tyres for that.
00:33:48So he's made a mistake in there, yeah.
00:33:50Great lap for Carlos Sainz.
00:33:52Won the Grand Prix here last year.
00:33:54Sensational performance on his way to victory.
00:33:57And he's looked good all the way through the weekend.
00:33:59Sole remaining Williams in the session.
00:34:01He's on fire at the moment, Sainz.
00:34:03He's got a fireplace grip penalty, remember, for tomorrow.
00:34:06And you said earlier in the weekend, that's going to sting.
00:34:08Because he's looked like being one of those midfielders capable of a giant killing.
00:34:14How much does he regret that lunge to the inside of turn 15?
00:34:17Contact with Antonelli.
00:34:19He was complaining about the penalty at the start of the weekend.
00:34:21Contact with Antonelli in the US Grand Prix means wherever he qualifies, he goes back five.
00:34:26And he's the winner here last year as well.
00:34:28But the penalty was fair.
00:34:29It was over Ambition in the end.
00:34:31But it's a Williams trying to pass a Mercedes in a Grand Prix.
00:34:34The race before he'd gone from 18th on the grid to 10th
00:34:38with a line of overtakes at the end of the race in Singapore
00:34:41where almost no one else was making overtakes.
00:34:43Before that, he's on the podium.
00:34:45He's one of the form drivers in the entire field right now, Carlos Sainz.
00:34:54I think we feel like turn five, something.
00:34:56It'd be weird up with the PU.
00:34:58Yep, we're on that, Oscar.
00:35:01So the team's seeing something on the data.
00:35:04But at turn five, immediately reported by the driver and Tom Stallard, his race engineer,
00:35:10on the radio saying they're on it and they're looking to try and deal with it.
00:35:13So that's your very low-speed right-hander.
00:35:16The second chicane.
00:35:18You're already down the gears.
00:35:20You're in second for the right-hander.
00:35:22And I'm imagining it might be something like a sort of power surge or torque spike where he's trying to get on the gas from five to six and suddenly just feels like there's a step out from the rear end of the car or he's trying to put a little bit of throttles, giving him a chunk and destabilized it.
00:35:40Obviously, Tom Stallard looking through the data, he's got so many channels that a huge amount of people can look through live.
00:35:48There's, you've got control systems engineer at the track.
00:35:51You've got a whole team back at base in Woking for McLaren.
00:35:54And Liam Lawson going again out of necessity beyond 210 miles per hour, hitting the brakes, trying to take as much curb as possible to keep one part of the Pirelli rubber between the white lines.
00:36:12That's the aim through turn two.
00:36:14He makes it through three with no obvious correction into the braking zone and has caught him out on the previous lap.
00:36:20And look at who's on the bubble again.
00:36:22It is Piastri.
00:36:23Not on a new tyre, but it's going to be a pressure lap when Oscar goes back out.
00:36:28Championship leader who just doesn't have a banker on the board once again.
00:36:32Oscar Piastri, the championship leader since the 20th of April.
00:36:36Gap climbing above 30 points for the championship lead when Lando Norris' engine expired in Zandvo.
00:36:43And Norris is dialed in right now.
00:36:46We saw his lap.
00:36:46It looked nigh on perfect.
00:36:48The car looked glued.
00:36:49It looked like it was on rails.
00:36:51Lando was precise with his inputs.
00:36:52Wasn't fighting it everywhere as we keep seeing Oscar have these moments of opposite lock.
00:36:58Big sliding, rolling oversteers.
00:37:01Lando's starting to dial in pretty well.
00:37:04So Lawson's coming back into the pits.
00:37:05He'll go for one more new tyre set.
00:37:07He's got time for that.
00:37:08His teammates go on into P4.
00:37:10Isaac Hadjar ahead of Max Verstappen.
00:37:12And then it is Hulkenberg, Tsunoda, Hamilton, Russell and Piastri, the top ten.
00:37:17Behrman trying to make it there for three weekends in a row.
00:37:21His teammate is directly behind him.
00:37:23It's a big moment in the destiny of the driver's title.
00:37:26That was actually Lawson on new boots for that one.
00:37:29So has he got an issue with his racing bull's car?
00:37:32Here's Oscar then.
00:37:34Well back in the queue.
00:37:36You can see brand shiny new red-walled soft tyres aboard the McLaren.
00:37:42He's now in the whims of other people potentially improving.
00:37:46Yellow flags.
00:37:47We're back in the scenario.
00:37:48It could be a punishing circuit.
00:37:49The barriers are close.
00:37:51Andrea Stella rightfully looking a little bit jittery here.
00:37:55Team principal at McLaren who has delivered two Constructors' Championships
00:37:59since he has held that position, driven the team along with Zac Brown
00:38:04back to the front in Formula 1.
00:38:06They want their first driver's title since 2008.
00:38:10Landon Norris currently the fastest.
00:38:12Nervy moments for Piastri.
00:38:14Verstappen in P5.
00:38:16Remember how committed the drivers are from Turn 7 to Turn 11.
00:38:20And there isn't much by way of runoff.
00:38:23We have seen late runs here affected by yellow flags.
00:38:26Not all the traditional big scalps will get through this.
00:38:29Looking at Sainz's pace and Hadjar's pace.
00:38:31Hülkenberg's looking quick.
00:38:33You're looking at the drop zone as well.
00:38:35Those Haas cars have got pace in them if they get hooked up.
00:38:38Antonelli has the potential to improve a lot.
00:38:40Fernando Alonso always has the potential to improve.
00:38:43And you've got Hamilton 8th, Russell 9th, Piastri 10th.
00:38:48Not everyone is going to be happy at the end of this Q2, I feel.
00:38:51The midfielders are out here to strike.
00:38:53Here comes Verstappen.
00:38:56Into the first three turns of the racetrack.
00:38:58Max Verstappen looking for that top 10.
00:39:01He's placed it there all the way through the season so far.
00:39:05His worst starting position was in eighth place back in Budapest.
00:39:09Takes a slipstream from his teammate up towards turn four.
00:39:13That might be an extra few hundredths.
00:39:15Could even be a tenth of a second from three into four for Verstappen.
00:39:19Yuki gets out of the way and will now focus on his own improvement on the next lap.
00:39:22So Red Bull playing the team game there for Verstappen who's done a personal best in the first part of the lap.
00:39:27And it's a good first sector.
00:39:28By far the best he's done so far.
00:39:31Finding his way through these corners.
00:39:33Been striking the bump dramatically in Q1.
00:39:36Seems to be happier in the second part of qualifying.
00:39:39Two-minute warning in Q2.
00:39:41These are the laps that you need to work.
00:39:43Comes through turn 12.
00:39:45Into the stadium section.
00:39:46Slowed once again at 40 miles per hour through 13.
00:39:51Runs the kerb on the exit.
00:39:53Will turn the entry into 16.
00:39:55Running a little bit wider than he has done at other times through the weekend.
00:39:58And Verstappen improves well.
00:40:00But he's still three and a half tenths down on Lando Norris.
00:40:02Significantly that sixth position for Esteban Ocon.
00:40:07Oscar Piastri on an out lap.
00:40:09Currently in the drop zone.
00:40:11P5 for Oliver Behrman.
00:40:13Lewis Hamilton with the fastest middle sector of anyone so far.
00:40:16He's the driver at risk at the moment.
00:40:18George Russell, Oscar Piastri, Fernando Alonso, Kimi Antonelli in the drop zone.
00:40:24Lawson on an out lap.
00:40:25Here's Antonelli as Hamilton goes P2.
00:40:28So Piastri is still on his out lap.
00:40:30He's just behind Antonelli ready to wind it up.
00:40:32And he will hope that Kimi keeps it pinned down to turn one for a beautiful slipstream.
00:40:36We'll see George Russell, who's in danger, try and scrabble his way through.
00:40:41Russell on pole for the Singapore Grand Prix P3 at the moment.
00:40:47Predicted knockout time is 1.17.0.
00:40:50Sainz goes over the line.
00:40:52Remember, he takes a five-place drop.
00:40:54So Holkenberg is going to be gone.
00:40:55He's not improved.
00:40:57Everyone else behind is out there seeking an improvement.
00:40:59And that includes Oscar Piastri, who has done a pretty ordinary first sector.
00:41:04This is it for Oscar Piastri.
00:41:06A Q2 exit here would open the door for Max Verstappen and Lando Norris.
00:41:11Last year, it was a Q1 exit.
00:41:14He needs speed through the corners that he's approaching on the left-hand side of your screen.
00:41:18Yeah, let's have a look then through turn seven.
00:41:20How much does he risk keeping the footed through eight and nine over the curve?
00:41:23Small correction through turn nine.
00:41:26Bouncing over the apex at ten as well.
00:41:28He's not arms and elbows through that middle sector.
00:41:30It's neat and tight.
00:41:31He's half a tenth up on Yuki Tsunoda.
00:41:33There's not a lot of buffer.
00:41:34Tsunoda has just gone tenth.
00:41:35Ocon is into the drop zone in eleventh.
00:41:38Over the line goes Fernando Alonso.
00:41:40He goes to thirteenth.
00:41:42Piastri needs this to be a mighty final sector.
00:41:45It's fine margins.
00:41:46Can he make his way through?
00:41:47Big save out of the final corner.
00:41:50And Piastri gets to seventh place.
00:41:52Wringing the neck of it.
00:41:53He was only seven hundredths of a second quicker than Yuki Tsunoda.
00:41:57He needed all of that traction out of the final corner.
00:42:00Wide eyes.
00:42:02Andrea Stella are quite right.
00:42:04That came down to the final corner.
00:42:07Look at the margins.
00:42:09Piastri in seventh.
00:42:10Then it's Antonelli in eighth.
00:42:12Behrman Hajar completing the top ten.
00:42:15Tsunoda misses out by one hundredth of a second.
00:42:18Ocon missing out by three hundredths of a second.
00:42:22Hülkenberg, Alonso and Lawson out as well.
00:42:25And Oscar Piastri's heart will be racing.
00:42:29He's made it.
00:42:30But he's made it by less than a tenth of a second.
00:42:33I'm sure he won't be the only one with racing hearts.
00:42:35With the way he was fighting the car.
00:42:37It's zero grip.
00:42:40Lawson's had a bit of a mare at the end there.
00:42:43Went out for another attempt.
00:42:44But just came through the pits.
00:42:45And stayed on the same set of tyres.
00:42:48And got nowhere near.
00:42:49He's obviously made another mistake.
00:42:50Alonso looked a little bit scrappy.
00:42:52Looked understeering into turn seven.
00:42:54And overseering in turn ten.
00:42:56The grip certainly is not easy to find around here.
00:42:59You can see how thick those rear wings are.
00:43:01It's maximum wing for minimum downforce.
00:43:03Because of the altitude of the circuit.
00:43:05And it makes the driver's life very, very difficult.
00:43:09I think Piastri was a couple of degrees of opposite lock away.
00:43:12From having to delay getting on the throttle fully out of the final corner.
00:43:15And not making it into Q3.
00:43:17But he's there.
00:43:19And that's what counts right now.
00:43:21Yuki Sinodo missed out by 12,000th of a second.
00:43:25Hajar gets through.
00:43:26It's his 12th Q3 appearance.
00:43:30Behrman has done three in a row.
00:43:31Okay.
00:43:33Yours for you, Oli.
00:43:33Good job.
00:43:35Woo-hoo!
00:43:38It's like he expects it now.
00:43:40The driver who's made it through Q3 for the third race in a row.
00:43:43Antonelli got through.
00:43:45As did Piastri, Leclerc, Sainz.
00:43:47Still ruining that penalty.
00:43:48He's got great form around here.
00:43:50And it's Verstappen, Russell, Hamilton and Norris.
00:43:53A reminder for you, Lewis Hamilton has not started in the top three of a Grand Prix for Ferrari so far.
00:44:01Let's hear from one of the big scalps of Q1, Alexander Alvin.
00:44:06Alex, sorry to see you here at this point.
00:44:08We did hear the radio at the end.
00:44:09Can you talk us through that one?
00:44:11How it all unfolded on your side?
00:44:13Yeah, I mean, I wasn't that unhappy with my lads.
00:44:16I felt like there were good lads, just slow.
00:44:18So it happens.
00:44:20I think we struggled just a bit with feeling grip on the track, which it can happen.
00:44:27That's frustrating.
00:44:28It looks like it's been a tricky weekend for everyone out there with the low grip levels.
00:44:31What specifically have you been chasing and what was missing this afternoon?
00:44:36Lots.
00:44:38Ride.
00:44:40We fixed the ride throughout the weekend, but then we showed a lot with the tyres just in qualifying.
00:44:45I had a lot less grip in qualifying than I did in a few players to three, so I need to figure out why.
00:44:50Any hope for tomorrow?
00:44:51Long race ahead?
00:44:52Yeah, long race.
00:44:53Thanks, Alex.
00:44:56Alexander Alvin out earlier than he would once, but saying it's a long race, there's all sorts of possibilities.
00:45:01What entertainment for the crowd there.
00:45:03There was a genuine possibility of the championship leader going out in Q2, but crucially for Oscar Piastri.
00:45:09He's made it, he can catch his breath, and can he now find his best laps of the weekend when it really matters?
00:45:16This has been a hallmark of his championship campaign in his third season of Formula One to try and eke out the very best in Q3.
00:45:25He will need it because Norris looks dialed in.
00:45:27He's half a second away from Norris.
00:45:29On these sort of days, it's a little bit like the Grand Prix in Austin, you've just got to maximise what you can do.
00:45:36Don't worry about Lando Norris, don't worry about Max Verstappen, just think, if I can get a top five, I get a top five.
00:45:43The other thing in play for the Mexican Grand Prix is the start, the long run to the first corner can make more of a difference than the final lap of qualifying around him.
00:45:51Oh, it's so well set up.
00:45:53Q3 to come, but first, a comparison between Lewis Hamilton and the man who was fastest in that session, Lando Norris with James and Ruth.
00:46:01Yeah, that's right, Alex.
00:46:02I mean, look, by F1 2025 standards, a pretty healthy gap between the top two in Q2.
00:46:07So let's take a look at a side-by-side lap to see exactly where the lap time was and the advantage for Lando Norris came from in that McLaren.
00:46:15We know it's been strong all weekend long, but the Ferrari has been stepping up as well.
00:46:20So you see along the bottom there, that data trace, car's very even in straight-line speed.
00:46:25That's such an important thing here in Mexico, especially as we get into race trim.
00:46:29And the driver's looking down the road to pick that brake zone through this first three-corner sequence.
00:46:36You can see how much curb they're having to take, especially in turn three there.
00:46:39A slight advantage to Lando Norris, 7 100s over the section, but then actually a little bit of a top speed advantage for the Ferrari in this direction.
00:46:46Down into turn four, later on the brakes, carries more speed in, does Lando Norris, but then it goes back to Hamilton's favor,
00:46:54bringing it exactly even as they head into seven through the double right-hander in the low speed.
00:46:59That McLaren's so strong.
00:47:01Norris seeks out a little bit of a gap, but then through these fast S's, again, the Ferrari so strong.
00:47:06Through 10 and 11, you see it dip back down, not just to even, but actually advantage for Lewis Hamilton.
00:47:13Back on the straight, now this time the McLaren, rather, with that Mercedes power unit, pulling it back up through turn 12.
00:47:19And this is where Lando Norris really makes the difference through this stadium section.
00:47:23A bit faster in 12, a little bit wide in 13, but he rolls the speed, keeps the minimum going.
00:47:28And then through that final turn 17, able to put the power down, gets a little bit of a better run, a better jump out.
00:47:34And ultimately, that's where that two-tenth of a second gap comes from.
00:47:38Ruth, all in that final sector, this McLaren is just so good in the low speed, isn't it?
00:47:43He's so good in the low speed.
00:47:44And what's even more ominous is Lando Norris did that on a used set of softs that he used already in the Q2 session.
00:47:52I mean, it is advantage McLaren at the moment.
00:47:54Lando's been fastest in nine of the free practice three sections.
00:47:59Only one is done to pole.
00:48:00Can he make it two?
00:48:01It's been an interesting session, though.
00:48:02We had drivers that were P1 in Q1, down in P10, barely making it in, just thousandths of a second, the difference.
00:48:07But from what you've seen, is it clear favorite Lando Norris?
00:48:11Does he have the advantage?
00:48:12At the moment, but never write out Max till the very end of it.
00:48:15Oscar does seem to be struggling.
00:48:17He used an extra set of tires, but so did Max in that Q2 session.
00:48:20It is advantage Lando going into Q3.
00:48:22It'll be interesting to see what Ferrari can do, if they can make any changes to make Lewis Hamilton a little bit quicker in that tight and twisty third section.
00:48:29But as we get ready for Q3, we'll head back up to the boys.
00:48:33Thank you, Ruth.
00:48:33Thank you, James.
00:48:34Here we go.
00:48:36Twelve minutes on the clock.
00:48:37Ten of the best drivers in the world trying to take pole position for the Mexico City Grand Prix on a day where it feels like any of the ten could be in the top five.
00:48:47And we could have any order for the championship contenders.
00:48:51Lando Norris did that middle part of the lap, though.
00:48:53Seven to eleven.
00:48:54Looked like he was on rails.
00:48:55The car looked so good.
00:48:57You're right.
00:48:58Minimal corrections.
00:48:59Able to let the speed run through the apexes to pick up the exit line as well.
00:49:03No fighting behind the wheel.
00:49:05And then I love that final sector as well.
00:49:07It doesn't look astonishing.
00:49:09But the way that he's on the cusp of locking the brakes into turn 13, as Hint said, that's where he made up actually more of his time compared to Lewis.
00:49:18Looked like it's close to a perfect lap around Mexico as you can get, given the nature of the circuit.
00:49:24Can he reproduce it now?
00:49:26Will he need to find even more?
00:49:28In the end, he had two tenths back to Lewis Hamilton there, who was second best.
00:49:32He looks to be in a class of his own.
00:49:33Had it in FP3 earlier on today as well.
00:49:36He's so dialed in, which makes it more surprising that Oscar's struggling so much this weekend on the other side of the carriage.
00:49:42But once again, it's all wiped.
00:49:45Nothing that has been on the board so far counts for anything.
00:49:47It's a clean slate and it's a chance for everyone to have a shot at pole or the front row or the top five, if that's all you can do on the day.
00:49:56It is crucial for Oscar Piastri.
00:50:00Lando Norris and Max Verstappen.
00:50:03Verstappen trying to score the greatest comeback in Formula One history, coming back from 104 points to take the title.
00:50:10Norris trying to reclaim a lead that he lost in April.
00:50:15He was the pre-season favorite.
00:50:16The pressure seemed to weigh heavily.
00:50:19Carlos Sainz will just go out and desperately attack the racetrack.
00:50:23He was on pole here one year ago and he won the Grand Prix.
00:50:27And here is the man who starts favorite, sure.
00:50:30You see the used tires on the Sainz-Williams, who was two thousandths away from Verstappen in Q2.
00:50:36It's looking so good.
00:50:38It is a shame for Sainz and Williams.
00:50:40He's got the five-place grid penalty.
00:50:42Otherwise, he might even be able to get in amongst the front runners once again here.
00:50:47Lovely shot of all the cars heading out.
00:50:50So, the top positions.
00:50:53For Verstappen, if he's in the top three, he'll have a chance to lead the race into the first corner.
00:50:57It's such a long run.
00:50:58You can see it from the way the cars are even exiting the pits up there to the roar of the crowd at the first corner.
00:51:03It's a long, old way.
00:51:04You've got to be in it to win it.
00:51:06And it doesn't necessarily have to be pole on this circuit.
00:51:10For Piastri, a top five will give him a chance at getting towards the top three.
00:51:14Maybe he's been able to make some tweaks in the meantime as well.
00:51:17And the car can come to life.
00:51:18It can be just a small amount of prep on the outlap.
00:51:21It can be a little bit of front wing to change the balance and get everything working sweetly.
00:51:25And suddenly, you turn into that first corner and you feel the grips there.
00:51:28You gain the confidence.
00:51:29You can attack and feel like you're back on an even keel.
00:51:33So, Oskar will be hoping, as he leaves the pits, on another new set of socks, that he can find that.
00:51:38And, of course, because he ran that Q2 session with a used set first,
00:51:42he is in the same boat as Verstappen and Norris in terms of tyres again.
00:51:46On board with Max Verstappen on his outlap.
00:51:50Here is the championship leader.
00:51:51Trying to become the 35th champion of the world by the time that we leave Abu Dhabi.
00:52:00Oskar Piastri under big pressure at the end of Q2.
00:52:03Pass that test.
00:52:05Can he say his best for last?
00:52:08Max Verstappen has the most pole positions of any driver in the field this year.
00:52:13Seven poles belong to him.
00:52:14He's looking for an audacious last lap to try and topple the McLarens.
00:52:19Max Verstappen building up to 200 miles per hour.
00:52:22Going for pole.
00:52:23On a day of big track evolution, we're used to seeing Max go right at the end.
00:52:27But he is the first car to attack turn one in Q3.
00:52:29This time around, nibbling the entry kerbs.
00:52:32He widens that first corner approach.
00:52:34Backs it over the kerbs on the apexes of two and three.
00:52:37That didn't look like too bad an exit for him as he picks up a George Russell slipstream momentarily down towards turn four and stamps on the brakes again.
00:52:44It's a good first sector.
00:52:46Collectors item that.
00:52:47George Russell giving a slipstream to Max Verstappen.
00:52:49Gratefully received though.
00:52:51Any advantage is useful.
00:52:52Top left of your screen.
00:52:54Lando Norris making his way through the first three turns.
00:52:57Looked good from Norris on the exit of turn three as well.
00:52:59The traction looked like it came to him.
00:53:01It's not actually as quick as Verstappen though in that part.
00:53:03This is crucial.
00:53:05Now there's the catch for Max Verstappen.
00:53:07That bump has been haunting him all the way through qualifying.
00:53:10Yeah, he has struggled with it relentlessly on every single lap.
00:53:14He's still in the fight.
00:53:15He kept his foot in.
00:53:16But it is always catching him out and costing him a bit of time in the middle sector.
00:53:20Norris coming up to there right now.
00:53:22Verstappen in the final part of the racetrack where he is so strong.
00:53:26Norris about to cut the beam through the second sector.
00:53:29First time on the board will belong to Max Verstappen.
00:53:32It's a 1.16.4 to beat.
00:53:35Norris is now up by a couple of tenths into the final sector.
00:53:38This is where he did his magic in Q2.
00:53:41Lando Norris hasn't been on pole position since the Belgian Grand Prix.
00:53:46It's a big moment now as he stands on the power, goes over the line,
00:53:50and he's ahead of his rival for the title.
00:53:53But, but, but the Ferraris are flying in the first part of the lap.
00:53:56Leclerc's nearly two tenths up on Norris through the first sector.
00:53:59Here's Oscar Piastri and he's third of the championship contenders, Norris, Verstappen and Piastri.
00:54:05But what part do Ferrari have to play?
00:54:08Here's the man who was on pole here last year.
00:54:10He will take a five-place grid drop.
00:54:12Sainz to the line.
00:54:13Sainz goes into fourth.
00:54:14What about Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton?
00:54:17Hamilton is neck and neck with Norris.
00:54:19Leclerc is up on Norris.
00:54:20The Ferraris are well and truly in play.
00:54:22Hamilton has one pole position around this circuit.
00:54:25Lewis Hamilton to the front row.
00:54:27Ahead of Verstappen.
00:54:29Ahead of Piastri.
00:54:30But what about Charles Leclerc?
00:54:32So often he comes alive in Q3.
00:54:35He goes over the line.
00:54:37He goes to pole position provisionally.
00:54:40What a lap from Charles Leclerc.
00:54:41Russell's close to the top three as well.
00:54:44The Mercedes is coming alive.
00:54:47First of all, Antonelli.
00:54:49George Russell, such a good qualifier this year.
00:54:52Only one time has he ever been outside of the top ten.
00:54:54That was in Monaco.
00:54:56Here in Mexico, it's Russell to go into P6.
00:54:59But Lewis Hamilton is staring at his best ever Grand Prix start for Ferrari.
00:55:04And Charles Leclerc steps forward.
00:55:06We've been talking about Norris, Verstappen and Piastri.
00:55:10But it's this man on run one who has provisional pole.
00:55:14They were so mighty last year, Ferrari, at this circuit.
00:55:19Carlos Sainz won the race.
00:55:21Had pole position.
00:55:22Charles Leclerc was so quick as well.
00:55:25But we've sort of written them off in recent races.
00:55:27Their form has been up and down, but mainly down.
00:55:30Well, they have turned it up at the perfect time.
00:55:34That is a mighty lap from Leclerc to get underneath a 1 minute 16.
00:55:37Nearly two tenths clear of Norris.
00:55:40And Hamilton as well.
00:55:42Two Ferraris up in the top three.
00:55:44What an effort.
00:55:45The championship party is going to be spoiled at this rate.
00:55:49Charles Leclerc has two pole positions around this circuit previously in his career.
00:55:54Lewis Hamilton has been seeking a moment like this.
00:55:57Trying to start, crucially, in the rows where you can fight for the lead in the opening meters of the Grand Prix.
00:56:03And against all expectations, it's Charles Leclerc, Lando Norris, Lewis Hamilton, Max Verstappen and Oscar Piastri.
00:56:12Not behind Max Verstappen by much after the first run.
00:56:15But crucially, he is behind in P5.
00:56:18Don't discount George Russell either.
00:56:20Lost a little bit too much time in the final sector.
00:56:23Just saw the message saying rears were nowhere.
00:56:25So a little bit of fine-tuning and Russell can get himself into that mix as well with the top five.
00:56:33Verstappen is close to Hamilton.
00:56:34That gap from Verstappen to Leclerc, probably the gap from Verstappen to Norris is too big.
00:56:39But we did see Max have that big old snap through turn nine that has been his Achilles heel so far in this qualifying session.
00:56:46There is time in there for Max.
00:56:48If he can get a top three, he'll have a chance to get in a slipstream race down that long straight to the first corner.
00:56:55Piastri has to keep his championship rivals in sight.
00:56:57He'll be hoping that Ferrari at this rate can do a great job and lock out the front row.
00:57:01Take away the big points from the likes of Norris or Verstappen.
00:57:05The track temperature is down to 43 degrees.
00:57:08There's the head-to-head between Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris.
00:57:14And Norris at the moment out-qualifying his rival for the title.
00:57:20Piastri, as so often we've seen, finding form in Q3.
00:57:24Norris will believe he can usurp Charles Leclerc, but Ferrari have entered the conversation
00:57:31in a way that many would not predict, including Charles Leclerc, who didn't think he was going to be able to fight for this.
00:57:39Remember, the teams are very concerned about the performance of the medium tyre.
00:57:45A lot of them have had to think about set-up changes going away from ultimate one-lap pace,
00:57:50like this man, who was doing a long run in FP3 earlier, concerned with race pace
00:57:55and changes that might have set them back for one lap qualifying.
00:58:00Wide open, battle for pole is about to come your way.
00:58:03Race pace becomes so much easier if you're at the front of the field,
00:58:07you have clean air and you can dictate the pace at the start of the Grand Prix as well.
00:58:11If you're in traffic, suddenly the race pace and tyre management becomes an even bigger headache.
00:58:17They all decide that 3 minutes and 26 seconds is the time to leave the garage.
00:58:22And here we go, one final lap and a critical lap for the top ten to sort themselves out.
00:58:30Well, improving at the end here is going to be weekend-defining.
00:58:33Yes, it is an incredibly long run of 600, of 768 metres down to the braking zone from pole position,
00:58:42down to turn one, and we have seen some epic moments through the years.
00:58:47Giving yourself the advantage of starting in the top two rows is everything.
00:58:51Norris would have expected a fight for pole,
00:58:54and it's up against the Ferraris as we go into the final run.
00:58:57Piastri is the first of the main contenders out on circuit.
00:59:03Verstappen follows him, so once again, Red Bull doing this one different
00:59:06to how they've been in recent races, being the last over the line.
00:59:10Max going earlier.
00:59:12Oscar the first.
00:59:13Lando leaves the pits now,
00:59:15followed by Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc
00:59:17will be the last car of the main protagonists over the line.
00:59:21Let's include George Russell as the main protagonist.
00:59:23Still mathematically in contention,
00:59:26although if you want to know how likely his chances are,
00:59:28he didn't know at the start of the weekend.
00:59:30They are 0%.
00:59:31It's the Jolian optimism that we enjoyed.
00:59:37They are 0%.
00:59:37He's had a great season,
00:59:38taking his two opportunities to win Grand Prix this year,
00:59:42but he's very much hoping that that changes next year.
00:59:44He expects to be a contender for the 2026 crowd,
00:59:47but we have five Grand Prix to run.
00:59:50Two sprint races.
00:59:51And we're setting the grid for the Mexico City Grand Prix.
00:59:55A Grand Prix won by Max Verstappen on five occasions.
00:59:59He's currently fourth, going in to the crucial run.
01:00:02Here we go then.
01:00:03Pole position up for grabs.
01:00:05A vital moment in the World Championship battle,
01:00:09and it's Oscar Piastri, DRS open,
01:00:11heading beyond 213 miles an hour to turn number one.
01:00:15Hammers on the brakes, gets the car stopped,
01:00:18picks up that first apex,
01:00:20brings it back to the right-hand side
01:00:21because this slingshot through turns two and three
01:00:23are so critical,
01:00:24and it was neat and tidy on the gas afterwards.
01:00:27Verstappen starts his flying lap now.
01:00:29I wonder if there's anything Max can even do
01:00:31about that turn nine,
01:00:32because the car just doesn't seem to ride the bumps.
01:00:35He might just have to hang the throttle in there
01:00:38and deal with the consequences
01:00:39rather than just go slow and keep the car settled.
01:00:42Verstappen is 300th of a second behind Charles Leclerc.
01:00:46That's a really good first sector from Verstappen.
01:00:48That's his best of the day so far.
01:00:50That is quicker than what Norris did earlier on.
01:00:53Piastri looking super lively in the middle sector.
01:00:55Sainz has matched Charles Leclerc's first sector.
01:00:58The driver who starts his final run in P8.
01:01:02Piastri not miles away.
01:01:04If he can continue this deficit,
01:01:05he would improve to the front row.
01:01:07He's hanging on to it, but it's quick.
01:01:10It's very quick for Oliver Behrman,
01:01:12who improves past the championship leader.
01:01:15He goes up to P5.
01:01:16Piastri needs this to be an improvement.
01:01:19He comes over the line,
01:01:20and he does improve to third position.
01:01:23Track is ramping up and ramping up.
01:01:25Norris' first sector is huge.
01:01:26What can Verstappen do?
01:01:28Chasing a return to the front row.
01:01:30He'll get it.
01:01:31He misses out on pole position,
01:01:33but he's ahead of both of his championship rivals.
01:01:35Norris is up on Leclerc in the first sector,
01:01:38and it's a mighty middle part of the lap as well.
01:01:40Sainz goes ahead of Piastri.
01:01:42He'll take a five-place grid penalty.
01:01:45Lando Norris, fastest in the first sector,
01:01:47fastest in the second sector.
01:01:49He's had to wait six Grand Prix before claiming pole position.
01:01:53It's been a while for Lando Norris.
01:01:56He comes over the line,
01:01:57and he's beaten Charles Leclerc's time by four-tenths of a second.
01:02:02How about that?
01:02:03That's mighty.
01:02:05That is a four-tenth buffer they've got to find.
01:02:07Hamilton to the front row,
01:02:10and now Charles Leclerc needs an electric final sector.
01:02:13Chasing career pole position, 28.
01:02:16Charles Leclerc can't get there.
01:02:18He climbs back to the front row.
01:02:20It's Lando Norris, Charles Leclerc, Lewis Hamilton, Max Verstappen.
01:02:25Kimi Antonelli is ahead of Sainz and Piastri.
01:02:29Can Russell inflict more pain on the championship leader?
01:02:33He does.
01:02:35P4 to go ahead of Max Verstappen,
01:02:38and Lando Norris has waited to hear these words.
01:02:42Lando Norris is on pole position with Verstappen in fifth,
01:02:46and Piastri P8.
01:02:48It's an extraordinary lap from Norris.
01:02:52The first run of Q3, it turns out, was very average,
01:02:56given what he had at his disposal,
01:02:58and he has just unleashed both barrels in this qualifying session,
01:03:03and that is shots fired towards a championship for Norris.
01:03:07Verstappen knows he's got to be perfect on this run-in,
01:03:09and fifth place gives him a lot of work to do in the Grand Prix tomorrow.
01:03:14And Piastri's damage limitation is lucky that Sainz has a five-place grip penalty
01:03:19because he's been out-qualified by a Williams,
01:03:21and his damage limitation is in full swing from seventh on the grid
01:03:26with Norris on pole.
01:03:30And you're on pole.
01:03:32Oh, what a lap.
01:03:35What a lap.
01:03:37I don't know how I did that.
01:03:39What's the matter, mate? It's a good lap.
01:03:40I know.
01:03:41Unless I know it depends.
01:03:45We've spoken so many times about monstrous Verstappen laps for pole.
01:03:51That is, I would say, one of Lando Norris' best ever laps.
01:03:54At the end, the championship on the line,
01:03:57to dig that out and have it so comfortably,
01:04:01he has six tenths up on Oscar Piastri.
01:04:03Piastri will start seventh on the grid.
01:04:07Sainz will take a five-place penalty.
01:04:10It was tight between Antonelli, Sainz, and Piastri.
01:04:13They were separated by five hundredths of a second.
01:04:17Hadjar in ninth place.
01:04:18Oliver Bearman will line up.
01:04:21He will move up.
01:04:21Hadjar will move up.
01:04:23But at the front of the field,
01:04:24Lewis Hamilton gets his higher start for Ferrari
01:04:27when it comes to qualifying for a Grand Prix.
01:04:30But for the 14th time in Formula One,
01:04:32and surely one of the most significant,
01:04:35Lando Norris is on pole position for the Mexico City Grand Prix.
01:04:39His first pole at this venue is rivals for the title in P5
01:04:44and what will become P7.
01:04:47Charles Leclerc with another front row in Formula One.
01:04:52It's the 43rd time that he'll start in the top two.
01:04:56But Norris on a day where it ebbed and flowed
01:05:00and no one had the grip all the way through.
01:05:03He knew there was a chance to convert at the end of the first runs.
01:05:07It was a surprise Ferrari appearance.
01:05:10At the end of the second, he's taken pole position
01:05:13and he will lead the line to start the 20th Grand Prix of the year.
01:05:21Looking to reclaim the lead he lost back in eight.
01:05:24What has happened to his team-mate?
01:05:30Oscar, it's not a surprise that he's down there.
01:05:33Just really struggling for confidence.
01:05:36Back-to-back weekends of difficulty for him.
01:05:39Austin into Mexico and Norris' championship
01:05:41is coming to life right now.
01:05:42He's been driving at a really high level for a while.
01:05:45Great job from the Ferrari guys as well.
01:05:47Second and third and they will be chuffed.
01:05:48Hamilton up in the top three.
01:05:51This is why he signed for Ferrari.
01:05:55He's taken them plenty of races,
01:05:57but he's up in the top three again.
01:06:00But yeah, Piastri has just gone missing
01:06:02at a crucial time of the year.
01:06:03And his previous five results
01:06:09find himself, including today,
01:06:12in seventh, sixth, third, ninth, and third.
01:06:16And before that, he was on pole in the Netherlands
01:06:17and on the front row for three of the four before that.
01:06:22The qualifying one lap pace
01:06:24that underpinned his rise to championship leader
01:06:26has deserted him in the last few races.
01:06:30And he will line up in P7.
01:06:32Long way to go in the Grand Prix,
01:06:34only setting the grid today.
01:06:36But what began as a blip in Baku
01:06:39has developed into a tough run of form.
01:06:43And those two have never won in Mexico City.
01:06:47They're the front row for the 20th Grand Prix of the year.
01:06:49Charles Leclerc and Lando Norris
01:06:51on another defining day for the championship.
01:06:56There are plenty of killers lining up behind them.
01:06:58Hamilton, Russell and Verstappen.
01:07:02We're going to have a great showdown tomorrow.
01:07:04And the two Ferrari, can they launch
01:07:05some sort of pincer attack at the first corner?
01:07:09Norris' starts in Austin weren't great.
01:07:10Leclerc came through then.
01:07:12There's a lot to unfold still,
01:07:14even if it is big advantage to Lando Norris today.
01:07:17Well, let's head downstairs where James Hinchcliffe
01:07:23is speaking to the top three.
01:07:28And we're here with the top three for the Grand Prix tomorrow.
01:07:31Lando Norris, Charles Leclerc, and Lewis Hamilton.
01:07:34And we'll start with you, Lando.
01:07:3614th pole of your career.
01:07:37First pole for McLaren here at Mexico City since 1990.
01:07:41And in a season where the gaps have been pretty tight
01:07:43and qualifying, that was a monster lap for you in Q3.
01:07:47Can you just talk us through it?
01:07:48Yeah, thank you.
01:07:50I mean, I'm happy to be back on pole.
01:07:52It's actually been quite a long time.
01:07:53So a good feeling.
01:07:56The lap, I don't know.
01:07:57It was one of those laps where you don't really know
01:07:59what happened.
01:08:00It felt decent, but then when I crossed the line
01:08:04and saw a 15-5, I was very pleasantly surprised.
01:08:07So I've been feeling good all weekend,
01:08:10especially from today, like FP3, Q1, Q2, Q3.
01:08:14I got a little bit nervous of the Ferrari in Q3 at the end,
01:08:16but I pulled it out when it mattered,
01:08:18and I'm happy because of that.
01:08:20You talk about it's been a minute since you were on pole.
01:08:22Last time was in Belgium, and you said then
01:08:24pole is sometimes a disadvantage there.
01:08:26We've got the longest run down to turn one
01:08:28of anywhere on the calendar here.
01:08:29How much sleep are you going to lose tonight
01:08:30going through all the different scenarios
01:08:32of what could unfold on that run down to one?
01:08:35Not a lot.
01:08:35I mean, I've not been sleeping well lately,
01:08:37so maybe that's the key to it all.
01:08:40But I won't.
01:08:40Like, you know, I've had some good races here in the past,
01:08:43so I just focus on what I can control,
01:08:45and that's what I can do.
01:08:46All right, well, don't go anywhere.
01:08:47We're going to come back to you, Cheryl.
01:08:48Congratulations.
01:08:49Front row start.
01:08:50Great run for Ferrari.
01:08:51It's been a track you guys have been competitive at,
01:08:54but at a track where the surface grip is so low,
01:08:56the downforce is lower than anywhere else
01:08:58that you guys run.
01:08:59How difficult is it to not overdrive
01:09:01when you're trying to push 10 tenths
01:09:02on a qualifying lap?
01:09:03Oh, it's very difficult.
01:09:05Disqualifying is very, very difficult
01:09:06because there's very little grip,
01:09:11so the car is sliding a lot,
01:09:13and in order to put everything together,
01:09:15it's very tricky,
01:09:16but I'm pretty happy with the job we've done.
01:09:19I don't think there was much more in the car.
01:09:21There's a bit here and there,
01:09:22as always in qualifying,
01:09:24but very happy with the best performance.
01:09:26It's been a year since this race,
01:09:27last year since Ferrari last won a Grand Prix.
01:09:30How much would it mean for you
01:09:30to bring home a victory tomorrow for the team?
01:09:33It will mean a lot,
01:09:34so we'll do everything in order
01:09:35to get the first place into your first corner
01:09:38and then see what's possible.
01:09:41Okay, and Lewis, P3 on the grid.
01:09:44This is sometimes a race where being P3,
01:09:46you get that double draft,
01:09:47it can be a bit of an advantage.
01:09:48Are you kind of rubbing your hands together
01:09:50at the possibilities in turn one?
01:09:52I have no clue what you just said.
01:09:55I said P3,
01:09:56you got a good shot with that double draft
01:09:57heading into one.
01:09:58Are you excited about where you're starting?
01:10:00I still didn't understand,
01:10:01but you know what?
01:10:02Let's ignore that.
01:10:03No, no, no, wait, wait, wait, wait.
01:10:04Let's talk about the fans.
01:10:06I'm really, really happy.
01:10:07Thank you so much, everyone.
01:10:08I'm honoured to be up here with Charles
01:10:12and with Lando.
01:10:14These guys have been so quick all year
01:10:15and it's an amazing feeling.
01:10:18This is the first time we've both been up
01:10:19in the top three in qualifying this year
01:10:21and the team truly deserve it.
01:10:23So we're just working as hard as we can.
01:10:24Super grateful to everyone in the team
01:10:26for continuing to push and not give up
01:10:29and we've not really moved the car forward
01:10:31necessarily in development,
01:10:33but we've extracted more from it.
01:10:35Our process is better this weekend
01:10:36and that's what you're seeing.
01:10:37So, grazie a tutti.
01:10:39The qualifying pace is obviously good.
01:10:41How do you guys feel about your race pace tomorrow?
01:10:45It's hard to obviously beat these two guys today,
01:10:48but I'm in the P3 is kind of the perfect spot
01:10:52actually at this track.
01:10:53So I'm hoping I can make the most of that at the start.
01:10:57I think our race pace is not too bad.
01:10:59I think it's difficult to know already,
01:11:02but I'm really hoping with this crowd,
01:11:05I know there's going to be an amazing crowd there tomorrow,
01:11:06so we'll try and give it a good race.
01:11:08Yeah, I was standing in the stadium during P3
01:11:11and every time you went by, that place erupted.
01:11:13I know a lot of people will be cheering for you tomorrow.
01:11:15Best of luck.
01:11:15Lando, we'll just finish with you.
01:11:17Crucially in the championship battle,
01:11:19you've qualified against both drivers
01:11:21that you're fighting against.
01:11:22Tomorrow, is it more focused on collecting points
01:11:25and staying ahead of them
01:11:26or is it just all about going for the win?
01:11:28No, I'm here to win.
01:11:30Yeah, no, I'll be looking forward.
01:11:33I know I'm going to have some quick guys behind me
01:11:35and it's a long run now to turn one and so forth
01:11:38and the race pace from the Ferraris is normally very strong,
01:11:40so I'm expecting a battle.
01:11:42I'm not expecting it to be easy,
01:11:44but no, eyes forward
01:11:45and I see how much I can win by.
01:11:48All right, well, let's see what you can do.
01:11:49Best of luck.
01:11:50Thank you, man.
01:11:50Your top three for the Mexico City Grand Prix,
01:11:54Lando Norris, Charles Leclerc, and Lewis Hamilton.
01:11:59Thanks, James Hinchcliffe, speaking.
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