Barcelona: Exciting qualifying session, Piastri on pole

Exciting Q3 without surprises, for those who missed the qualifying of the Spanish Grand Prix, here is the simplest way to summarize the events.

After the first fast laps of Q1, Oscar Piastri, Max Verstappen, and Lando Norris were in the lead, and this did not change by the end of this session, the aforementioned trio remained in order. If not in this, we saw plenty of surprises in the midfield: Gabriel Bortoleto and Oliver Bearman advanced, while familiar Q3 participants appeared among those eliminated. The names of the dropouts included Nico Hulkenberg, Esteban Ocon, Carlos Sainz, Franco Colapinto, and Yuki Tsunoda.

Q2 was almost a copy of Q1: Piastri, Norris, and Verstappen on top, which remained unchanged later as well. The only variable in the equation was Pierre Gasly with the standing Alpine, who made it to Q3. Those we said goodbye to were Alexander Albon, Gabriel Bortoleto, Liam Lawson, Lance Stroll, and Oliver Bearman in that order.

In Q3, McLaren dominated once again; after the first shots, Norris, Piastri, and George Russell were leading. Looking at the times, it was already evident that a serious battle for pole position was coming. It was very close; any of the previously mentioned trio could have been the winner, but in the end, Oscar Piastri played the best chess, thus starting from the first grid position in tomorrow's Spanish Grand Prix, ahead of his teammate and Max Verstappen.

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Photo: MotorsportWeek