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Hamilton is in pole position for the 96th time and Verstappen manages to snatch second place from Bottas on the starting grid of the Russian Grand Prix, while the Ferraris do not pass Q2. To read the final, the classification in Sochi did not show any big surprises. In fact, it all happened in Q2: Vettel entered the block hard, Hamilton risked being eliminated and Leclerc showed signs of growing nervousness towards Ferrari.
Vettel missed the qualifying accident to update his resume. The German driver partially destroyed his Ferrari and forced the race management to wave the red flag two minutes and 15 seconds from the end of the session. A time that in theory allowed the other pilots to make one last attempt, as long as they started fast.
At that time Hamilton still did not have the time trial to advance to Q3. His first part was canceled for going off the track, while the second attempt was interrupted by the red flag. At the restart, the World Cup leader was at the rear of the group. To avoid the checkered flag, he had to violate a gentlemen’s agreement between drivers (the prohibition to overtake on the launch lap): he passed Sainz and Pérez, dodged the checkered flag by 8 tenths, won the passage to Q3 and there he did the usual work. From half a second up the advantage over the pursuers. After Verstappen (Red Bull) and Bottas (Mercedes) qualified: 4. Ricciardo (Renault); 5. Pérez (Racing Point); 6. Sainz (McLaren); 7. Ocon (Renault); 8. Norris (McLaren); 9. Gasly (AlphaTauri); 10. Albon (Red Bull).
Hamilton’s comment: “’It’s good to see people in the stands again. The session was one of the worst of my career, with my heart pounding until the end. Sochi is the worst circuit to have pole on, so it will be difficult to win, but in the meantime we are thinking about making a good start. Hamilton fears the wake effect of the long starting straight, which has favored second row drivers in the past.
Furious Leclerc, who let out a yell before turning off the radio and then, in interviews with Sky, made himself understood: “They told me there were 2 seconds to go before the launch, but then I saw there was more … maybe I could finish eighth instead of eleventh. I’m angry, I have to calm down. ”The Monegasque driver reproaches the pit wall for having queued him at Kvyat, when in fact he could have braked and taken a margin of the track to be able to push more .
Vettel, on the other hand, admits to the mistake: “I lost the car at Turn 2 and then at 4, I couldn’t get it back.” He will start in 15th place, one of the worst placements of his career.
The only good news for Ferrari comes from Mick Schumacher, driver at the Driver Academy in Maranello. Michael’s son won the F2 race and moved up the rankings: 186 points, plus 18 over Illot. If he wins the championship (and even if it comes close) he could make his F1 debut with Alfa Romeo next year.
