Tag: Australian GP

Lewis Hamilton Gets 2019 Australian GP Pole Position and New Track Record

It will be an all Mercedes front row for the Australian Grand Prix tomorrow as Lewis Hamilton grabbed pole position on Saturday. Putting in a 1:20.486 lap, the British driver set a new best lap for the Melbourne Grand Prix Circuit. Qualifying behind by 0.112s, Valtteri Bottas will start on the front row as well. The second row will have Sebastian Vettel from Ferrari and Max Verstappen from Red Bull Racing. Charles Leclerc from Ferrari placed fifth with the two Haas drivers Romain Grosjean and Kevin Magnussen placing sixth and seventh. The other Red Bull driver, Pierre Gasly, placed 17th.

Q1

In the first qualifying session, it was Charles Leclerc who got first place, beating both Mercedes drivers who were holding the place before. Williams were in the bottom two places during Q1 with Robert Kubica going into the grass during a hot lap. Lance Stroll was knocked into 16th place in the final minutes of the session. Sebastian Vettel made it through to Q2 in Medium tyres, as opposed to most of the grid who drove in Softs.

Q2

In Q2 it was Renault drivers Nico Hulkenberg and Daniel Ricciardo who came the closest to moving on but failed. The two Toro Rosso drivers Alexander Albon and Daniil Kvyat also did get eliminated. Antonio Giovinazzi was eliminated while his teammate Kimi Raikkonen moved on.

Q3

Before Lewis Hamilton grabbed pole position with his record lap, Valtteri Bottas also set a track record with a 1:20.598 lap. Vettel placed third but has a 0.704 gap to the top lap. Sergio Perez drove the slowest lap in Q3, being 2.295s behind Hamilton.

Mercedes hopes to use their front row lockout to their highest potential tomorrow when the Australian Grand Prix takes place. The broadcast starts at 1 AM EST.

Lewis Hamilton Puts In Best FP1 and FP2 Laps At Albert Park – 2019 Australian GP

Lewis Hamilton topped both Friday practice sessions in Australia, ahead of the Formula 1 Australian Grand Prix.

FP1

In Free Practice 1 it was last year’s champion Lewis Hamilton who had the fastest lap. Putting in a 1:23.599, Hamilton was ahead of Sebastian Vettel by 0.038. His teammate Valtteri Bottas was 5th on the timing sheet, behind by 0.267. Charles Leclerc was in third place, behind by 0.074s.

During the session there was a red flag put out due to Alexander Albon spinning out in sector one. The car collided with a barrier, making the front wing of the car fall off. Valtteri Bottas spun in sector three but avoided making contact with any walls.

The two Williams cars placed last in the timing sheet, both being more than four seconds behind the best lap. George Russell stopped his car on pit lane at one point in the session and had his car pushed back to his box.

Kimi Raikkonen was the highest placing driver in this session who isn’t in a 2018 top three team, as he joined the Alfa Romeo squad this year.

FP2

In the second practice session Lewis Hamilton found himself improving his FP1 lap time, clocking in a 1:22.600 lap to get first place. Fellow Mercedes driver Valtteri Bottas was behind him by 0.048s. The Red Bull Racing duo of Max Verstappen and Pierre Gasly took third and fourth with Sebastian Vettel from Ferrari taking fifth. Gasly reported a loss of power in the car with only a few minutes left in the session.

Alexander Albon’s troubles continued into the second practice session as he went off track in sector 3, losing control by hitting grass beside the track.

Kimi Raikkonen continued to be the highest placing driver who wasn’t from Mercedes, Ferrari or Red Bull. Renault placed 7th and 8th after Ricciardo was in 17th in FP1.

Williams continued to struggle in the second practice session, nearly being a second slower than everyone on the grid.

The final practice session will be held tomorrow at 11 PM EST with the qualifying held at 2 AM EST. The Formula 1 season will officially commence on Sunday when the Australian Grand Prix takes place at 1 AM EST.