Miguel A. HerguedasSpecial Envoy Sakhir

Special Envoy Sakhir

Updated Friday, March 1, 2024-18:23

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  • Fast lap Who will stop the collector Verstappen?

The speculation ended, the masks fell and

Max Vestappen

started the 2024 World Cup as he had closed the previous one.

He was laughing out loud under his helmet after his first pole position of the year (1:29.179), with 22 hundredths ahead of

Charles Leclerc

and 30ths ahead of

George Russell

.

There was no way for the Spaniards to put up a fight, because

Carlos Sainz

, fourth, and

Fernando Alonso

, sixth, still need more momentum after one lap.

Nothing else

The Spaniard played against the grain, waiting his turn and betting everything on a bullet, when his opponents left the court free.

Thanks to a fantastic intermediate sector, where he set a provisional record, he was able to pull ahead of Hamilton and the McLarens.

And he only lost to

Sergio Pérez

by five thousandths.

It was betting on the new soft ones in Q2 and spreading terror among the competition.

Mad Max

's 1:29.374

not only meant more than half a second before Pérez, but it also gave him carte blanche to save tires, while the rest had to use an extra set.

The one who squeezed them best was Leclerc (1: 29.165), reiterating Ferrari's power in the second and third sectors, where he destroyed Verstappen by more than five tenths.

The benefit was also noticeable for Alonso, who had gone out to Q2 with new shoes, although far from the lead.

His second attempt, a little more refined, would place him fifth, 69 hundredths behind Leclerc.

The asphalt temperature dropped to 21ºC and Mercedes continued to sweat more than she should.

George Russell

, investigated for not following the race director's instructions, had to hurry until the last moment, just like Hamilton.

The unmitigated disappointment was

Lance Stroll

, twelfth, almost a tenth off the cut, set by

Oscar Piastri

.

In Q1, the Canadian had already had to wait for his final attempt to escape the burn, but his time, just 56 thousandths off the lead, left clues about the Aston Martin's brio.

Hamilton also suffered a little more than expected, with a 1:30.4 that placed him half a second behind Sainz.

The only positive surprise was the speed of

Alex Albon

, embedding his Williams between the Merceeds.

On the other side of the scale, Alpine's failure, with its two cars in the hole.

Meanwhile,

Otmar Szafnauer

, former boss of the French team, walked through the

paddock

with his VIP accreditation.