Alice Powell admits one Formula 1 driver did not have the qualifying the BBC pundit ‘expected’ at the Japanese GP, as Red Bull star Max Verstappen sealed pole position.
Three-time reigning drivers’ champion Verstappen made it four poles in four races to kick off his season on Saturday. The 26-year-old has enjoyed a perfect start to his 2024 campaign in qualifying. But he only beat Red Bull teammate Sergio Perez by 0.066 seconds at Suzuka.
Perez gave Verstappen the closest run for his money in qualifying any driver has managed so far in 2024 at the Japanese GP. It also marks the Mexican’s first front-row start of the season after Ferrari drivers Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz sealed second in the first three races.
Charles Leclerc suffered the Ferrari driver’s worst qualifying of 2024 at the Japanese GP
Neither Ferrari driver came close to challenging for pole position or a front-row start at the Japanese GP, though. Sainz will lead the Scuderia’s challenge off the grid at Suzuka from his P4 start. Leclerc could only manage P8, 0.589 seconds down on Verstappen’s pole lap time.
Sainz was 0.485s away from Verstappen’s time at the end of Saturday as he sought to build on winning the Australian GP. The Spaniard started second in Melbourne last time out after Leclerc lined up beside Verstappen at the season-opening Bahrain GP and Saudi Arabian GP.
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The slender 0.104s margin between Sainz and Leclerc was also enough for Fernando Alonso, Oscar Piastri and Lewis Hamilton to split the Ferrari pair in qualifying for the Japanese GP. It is also Leclerc’s worst qualifying result since he only secured P9 in Q3 at the 2023 Dutch GP.
Charles Leclerc stunned Alice Powell by failing to meet expectations at Suzuka
Leclerc did not feel Ferrari suffered any balance issues which left him lapping off the pace in qualifying at Suzuka. But his plight shining through early on stunned former W-Series driver Powell when Leclerc set a lap time 0.456s down on Q2 pace-setter Verstappen’s 1:28.740.
“[He’s] two tents down [on] Max Verstappen at the moment as he heads through 130R,” Powell said on BBC Radio 5 Live Sports Extra (6/4, 07:31). “Foot flat, heavy on the brakes through the chicane [and] slightly bounces his Ferrari, as well.
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“[His] head wobbling about in the cockpit. But he manages to make it through. But [he] only jumps up to P6, so not what we’re expecting to see from the Ferraris this weekend.”
Leclerc sought to use too much of the inside kerb entering the final chicane with almost half of his SF-24. It forced the Monegasque to wrestle the steering to keep control before flicking into the left-hander, where he again used a lot of the inside kerb and unsettled his car again.
The Scuderia star knew he needed to find further lap time on the run to the finish line, so he pinned the SF-24 toward the inside wall. But his 1:29.196 run was slower than the initial lap times by both Red Bull stars and also both McLaren drivers, plus Aston Martin racer Alonso.
Leclerc, who has secured 23 pole positions in his Formula 1 career, ultimately only made it out of Q2 by 0.276s to Visa Cash App RB driver Daniel Ricciardo. His lap was only the ninth fastest in Q2 and 0.097s down on what Sainz managed in the other Ferrari car to claim P6.
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