Who took pole position down under during the first F1 qualifying session of 2025 at the Australian GP?
After the practice sessions indicated a battle between McLaren and Ferrari at the front, and Oliver Bearman’s second crash of the weekend, all eyes were focused on who would take pole position at Albert Park.
The stunning autumn sun acted as a backdrop for the first qualifying session of the season, with questions over the competitive order about to be answered.
Could Williams pull a surprise Q3 appearance, and where would Red Bull’s overnight improvements see Max Verstappen qualify?
Q1
A queue formed at the end of the pit-lane, with Esteban Ocon out first. It took a good two minutes for all 20 cars to make their way out on to track.
Oliver Bearman’s challenging weekend continued unabated, with a gearbox problem forming forcing him back into the pits, his session over.
As the lap times began to tumble, the medium tyre shot Mercedes of George Russell and Andrea looked to be on a heavy fuel runs. They slipped to over a second behind the McLaren of Lando Norris who put half a second between him and the rest of the field.
Team-mate and home hero Oscar Piastri slotted in behind. However, the Red Bull of Max Verstappen had transformed overnight, and he split the McLarens.
With less than ten minutes to go, Russell’s attempt to move into Q2 on soft tyres looked to have paid off. He moved into fourth.
Track evolution was dramatic, as multiple drivers set purple sectors. Lewis Hamilton moved into the top ten, but both Ferraris needed to find something special to trouble the top two.
Liam Lawson’s troubles at the Australian GP also continued, as did Antonelli, as both were down in the lower order, the pressure very much on. Lawson lacking grip, went wide at the final corner after a difficult lap looked set to start the race from the back.
The final few minutes became frantic. Yuki Tsunoda moved into sixth, Pierre Gasly into eighth, Russell second after fitting soft tyres.
Rookies Isack Hadjar, and Jack Doohan progressed, and Gabriel Bortoleto put in a last gap lap to knock Antonelli out of qualifying.
Eliminated: Antonelli, Hulkenberg, Laim Lawson, Esteban Ocon, Oliver Bearman
Q2
As Q2 got underway, the top teams took to the track first, with Verstappen the first to set a competitive lap time. A 1:15:688 was four tenths of a second faster than Q1, with Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton settling in behind.
The two McLarens usurped Verstappen from the top of the times, with both Williams moving into the top ten after the first runs. Fernando Alonso pitted after his first lap after damaging his Aston Martin on the kerbs, while team-mate Stroll moved into ninth. Williams looked strong, with Albon in seventh, and Williams in tenth.
The lower order came out for their first laps with eight minutes to go. Tsuonda put his Racing Bull into sixth, while Hadjar slotted into 11th. Doohan’s first lap was deleted due to track limits.
Ferrari looked in trouble, with both car’s seeing their speed drop away in the final sector. Both running used tyres, they ended up fifth and sixth, with many faster cars behind them.
With three minutes to go, the field began to make its way back onto the track after pitting for new tyres. Bortoleto’s final lap involved a spectacular save, but he failed to advance.
Lance Stroll failed to get out of the bottom five, but Lewis Hamilton had a nightmare final lap. He spun his Ferrari, compromising many of those behind him. Despite his excursion, he still moved into Q3.
The same could not be said of Alonso, who joined team-mate Stroll on the sidelines for the final part of qualifying.
Eliminated: Fernando Alonso, Isack Hadjar, Lance Stroll, Jack Doohan, Gabriel Bortoleto,
Q3
The two McLarens were the first to set a lap time as Q3 got underway. With nothing to choose between them, Piastri’s final corner cost him dearly, moving into the lead, while Norris’s second place was deleted.
Max Verstappen then materialised, to move into provisional pole, ursusurping Leclerc’s Ferrari. With no banker lap for Norris, the British driver found himself slowest of the top four.
Alex Albon moved into a competitive fifth, with Tsunoda in sixth. Lewis Hamilton’s first lap put him in back in seventh. Gasly and Sainz rounded off the drivers with a time on the board.
The cars rejoined the circuit with just under four minutes left. The two McLarens led the field out in the usual traffic jam in the pits.
Piastri was first to try and knock Verstappen off pole position. His first sector was within a tenth of a second, while Norris set fastest of all. As Piasdtri crossed the line, he found half a second, but Norris took pole by less than a tenth. Verstappen took third.
Lewis Hamilton’s Ferrari’s was only sixth. Tsunoda ended a spectacular fifth, Albon an equally brilliant sixth, the two Ferraris dropping to seventh and eighth, with Gasly and Sainz completing a competitive top ten.
Top 10: Norris, Piastri, Verstappen, Russell, Tsunoda, Albon, Leclerc, Hamilton, Gasly, Sainz
Feature Image Credit: Red Bull Content Pool/Clive Mason/Getty Images
