Magnussen takes maiden F1 pole in Brazil

Kevin Magnussen has scored a shock maiden pole at the São Paulo Grand Prix in Brazil for Haas, ending the longest wait for a constructor’s pole in F1 history, AUTO ACTION’s Reese Mautone reports… 

Friday at the Autódromo José Carlos Pace marked the commencement of the final Sprint Weekend of the season, as the gloomy Friday Qualifying Session set the grid ahead of Saturday’s Sprint Race.

Qualifying 1: 

– Cars lined up, awaiting the green light to open the first 18-minute session as rain loomed. 

– On his first attempt, Charles Leclerc got his Ferrari into P1, however, not without struggle, catching his F1-75 after a tense moment on the curbs. 

– Carlos Sainz, who will be taking a 5-place grid penalty for taking his 6th ICE of the season, joined his teammate in P2 before both Ferraris were relegated down two places as the Red Bull duo found pace. 

– The track wavered between intermediate tyres and slick tyres, with Pierre Gasly the first to opt for the switch. After seeing Gasly go over four-tenths faster than Lewis Hamilton’s P1 time. 

– Ferrari’s pitstop blunders continued as their indecision held up Leclerc who was left sitting there, his team tussling for slick tyres. 

– As the 20 cars emerged onto the track on soft tyres, times began reaching the 1:14.00s. 

– After being held up by his team, and then a slow-moving Tsunoda, Leclerc helped his teammate’s qualifying efforts with an unintentional tow. 

– Lando Norris finished the opening session in P1, while his teammate narrowly avoided another Q1 exit in P15. 

– Behind Norris came Hamilton and Fernando Alonso, as the Aston Martin of Sebastian Vettel saw itself in an impressive P5. 

– Mick Schumacher, whose 2023 seat is currently under threat, failed to get through to Q2, while his teammate ended the opening session in P7. 

Knocked out: 

16. Nicholas Latifi 
17. Zhou Guanyu 
18. Valtteri Bottas 
19. Yuki Tsunoda 
20. Mick Schumacher 

Qualifying 2: 

– Clouded by some Brazilian mist, rain failed to fall ahead of Q2, as all teams emerged yet again on slick tyres. 

– Norris continued with his front-running pace, going P1 on his first attempt ahead of Max Verstappen. 

– Having a healthy history with the Autódromo José Carlos Pace, Gasly proved his Alpha Tauri had pace, going P3 in the opening stages of Q2, ahead of Kevin Magnussen’s Haas. 

– Alonso pipped Norris for P1 by just under two tenths in the 1:11.00s, before the track and tyres began ramping up.

– With under 8 minutes to go, both Mercedes found themselves in the elimination zone and opted for a tyre change which saw their times improve. Hamilton went P4, while George Russell found himself in P3. 

– Many drivers reported rain at different points across the lap as conditions darkened in São Paulo. 

– Sainz battled on the fringes of the Elimination Zone, and with 3 minutes remaining in Q2, the Spaniard began putting in fastest sectors on a lap which saw him cross the line in P2 ahead of his teammate in P3. 

– Aston Martin’s competitive pace in Q1 disappeared as both drivers were knocked out in Q2. Sebastian Vettel locked up heading into Turn 1 while his teammate’s raw pace failed to break into the top 10. 

– in his second last race weekend with Mclaren, Daniel Ricciardo too was eliminated as his teammate sat safely in P5. 

– Both Alpines made it through to the top 10 shootout, accompanied by Kevin Magnussen. 

Knocked out: 

11. Alex Albon 
12. Pierre Gasly 
13. Sebastian Vettel 
14. Daniel Ricciardo 
15. Lance Stroll 

Qualifying 3: 

– With weather conditions unknown, cars returned to the track on slick tyres, bar Leclerc who opted for an intermediate tyre gamble. 

– Sainz led the Q3 charge, while Leclerc remained on his intermediate tyres, holding up Perez before pitting for a set of new soft tyres. 

– At turn 4, George Russell found his W13 beached in the gravel trap after a front-end snap on entry, then digging his rear wheels into the gravel trying to avoid the wall, causing a red flag as rain began to fall on the circuit. 

– The red flag could not have come at a better time for Magnussen who found himself sitting with provisional pole, a lap time set on soft tyres, while rain continued to fall across the Autódromo José Carlos Pace. 

– On the opposite end of the spectrum, prior to the red flag, a frustrated Leclerc failed to set a time in the dry conditions due to his team’s poor strategy choice. The Monegasque did not return to the track, forced to settle for P10. 

– The excitable and well-deserving Danish driver secured the first pole position of his F1 career, as well as Haas’ with a lap time of 1:11.674, a result no one in the paddock could be mad at. 

– He will line up on the front row alongside Max Verstappen, with Russell and Norris making up Row 2. Top 10:

1. Kevin Magnussen (1:11.674) 
2. Max Verstappen 
3. George Russell 
4. Lando Norris 
5. Carlos Sainz (5-place grid penalty to be applied) 
6. Esteban Ocon 
7. Fernando Alonso 
8. Lewis Hamilton 
9. Sergio Perez 
10. Charles Leclerc 

Tomorrow’s Sprint Race promises to be an exciting one, taking place at 4:30 pm track time (6:30 am AEST) to decide the starting grid for the Brazilian Grand Prix, with Kevin Magnussen leading the charge.

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