The first qualifying of the season ends up being a thriller. The only German driver is in the middle of it for a long time. But then the world champion prevails.
Max Verstappen has secured the first pole position of the 2024 Formula 1 season. The Red Bull driver set the fastest time in qualifying in Bahrain on Friday afternoon and will therefore start from the front in the race for the Bahrain Grand Prix on Saturday (from 4 p.m. in the live ticker on t-online). Behind the reigning world champion, Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) came in second, George Russell (Mercedes) came third.
Nico Hülkenberg immediately showed an unexpectedly strong performance in the Haas, the only German in the field will start from tenth position on Saturday.
| placement | Driver, teamdriver | team | Round |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. |  Max VerstappenRed Bull | Red Bull | 17 |
| 2. |  Charles LeclercFerrari | Ferrari | 19 |
| 3. |  George RussellMercedes | Mercedes | 17 |
| 4. |  Carlos SainzFerrari | Ferrari | 18 |
| 5. |  Sergio PerezRed Bull | Red Bull | 17 |
Instead of the usual Sunday, the first two races of the new season in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia will take place on Saturdays – in consideration of the beginning of the fasting month of Ramadan.
Qualifying was initially much tighter than expected, and Verstappen only took the lead in the final section. Behind the dominator of the past few years, the field is mixed up. Places four, five and six are occupied by Carlos Sainz in the Ferrari, Verstappen’s teammate Sergio Perez and Fernando Alonso in the Aston Martin.
Record world champion Lewis Hamilton, who was surprisingly the fastest man in free training on Friday, only ended up in a disappointing ninth place and thus directly ahead of Nico Hülkenberg. Meanwhile, the German put in a good performance: For Haas, who came last in the team world championship last year, he only made it into the last section of the top 10, and ended up in tenth place on the grid, while his teammate Kevin Magnussen will only start from position on Saturday 15.