From Mercedes’ Strike Out to the Future of F1: Remarkable Numbers Defining the Chaotic Qualifying at Imola

It was an eventful F1 qualifying session at the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix. The entire first day of the race weekend was drenched with rain, which meant we had the first wet qualifying session of the season. And it was Max Verstappen who took the pole position from championship leader and Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc.

The world champion stayed out of trouble and avoided any major issues from many red flags throughout the session. The session had a record number of red flags for qualifying in F1 with 5 beating Hungary in 2016.

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While that was not the case for the championship leader, Charles Leclerc. The Monegasque driver certainly had the pace to challenge the Red Bull driver for pole position for the Sprint race tomorrow. But he could only manage the time, which was second fastest on the grid, as he got one timed lap in Q3. Lando Norris too impressed everyone with his pace as he finished P3 in mixed conditions despite bringing out the red flag in the dying moments of the session.

Are Max Verstappen and Charles Leclerc taking control of F1 now?

The first 3 on the grid for the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix are quite young, as all of them are under the age of 25. It is one of the youngest starting grids in Formula One history for a race.

The future is certainly looking bright for the young generation, as they seem to have replaced the old guard. Many have mentioned that the Top 3 drivers in the qualifying are replacements for legends like Vettel, Alonso, and Hamilton.

The 3 different teams at the front of the grade also signify the return to the start of the 2010s, when the 3 top teams were dominating the sport.

Can Mercedes F1 bounce back in Imola after quali disappointment?

Since the beginning of the turbo-hybrid era, Mercedes had dominated the sport, which meant the other teams had less opportunity to compete for top honors.

But it looks like the team might have lost their mojo, as for the first time since Japan 2012, both of their drivers failed to qualify for Q3. These are indeed worrying times for the German team, who cannot seem to find a solution to their problems. But they will have 2 opportunities this weekend to rectify their qualifying disappointment and score some decent points.

Lando Norris continues to dominate his teammate in qualifying

McLaren driver Lando Norris once again finished ahead of his teammate Daniel Ricciardo in qualifying. The British driver finished P3 after the end of the session while the honey badger could only manage P6.

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Norris has out-qualified Ricciardo in 8 consecutive races and all 4 of the 2022 season. Although this result could have been different if the Aussie driver had the chance to put on his second lap before the red flag. But the Woking-based team has an amazing opportunity once again to score some big points this weekend as they have 2 opportunities to do so.

Kevin Magnussen gets the Haas into the Top-4

Kevin Magnussen is certainly delivering for Haas in the 2022 season. The Danish driver finished the Imola qualifying in the best ever position for the American team in P4.

But his teammate Mick Schumacher was not so lucky as he finished P12 after being caught out by the rain. But just like McLaren, Haas also has very good opportunities to score big points in Sprint and the main race. They’re certainly one of the most impressive teams on the grid right now.