2024 F1 Round 13, Hungarian GP qualifying: Norris takes pole in 1m15.227s as McLaren lock out the front row for the first time in 12 years; Tsunoda makes Q3 but crashes

Qualifying for Round 13 of the 2024 Formula 1 season, the Hungarian Grand Prix, concluded at the Hungaroring on the evening of 20 July China time (UTC+8). McLaren locked out the front row: Lando Norris took his second pole of the season with 1m15.227s, while Oscar Piastri was just 0.022s slower in second. It was McLaren’s first front-row lockout in 12 years, since the 2012 Brazilian Grand Prix. Max Verstappen was third, 0.046s behind. Both RB drivers reached Q3, with Daniel Ricciardo ninth and Yuki Tsunoda 10th.

Light rain began falling at the Hungaroring an hour before qualifying. The air temperature dropped to 24°C and the track to 30°C, a sharp contrast to Friday’s scorching 60°C surface. Incidents came early in the slippery opening to Q1. Logan Sargeant failed to slow sufficiently at Turn 1 and lightly touched the barrier. Sergio Perez lost control at the particularly slippery Turn 8 and hit the barrier heavily with the rear of his car, suffering a second consecutive Q1 exit. With speculation mounting that he could lose his seat after the summer break, the timing of the crash was especially unfortunate. George Russell had earlier nearly lost control at the same spot. He saved the car, but could not avoid elimination and qualified only 17th. The session was red-flagged for the track to be cleared, with 6m45s remaining.

Q2 was relatively uneventful as the surface dried, but a forecast of rain “in five minutes” arrived before Q3 began. Tsunoda returned to Q3 for the first time since the Canadian Grand Prix, four rounds earlier. On his second flying lap, however, he ran wide exiting Turn 5, went onto the grass and was launched into the barrier as the underside of the car struck the ground. Another red flag stopped the clock with 2m13s left. Fortunately, Tsunoda was unhurt and climbed out unaided, but the rear of the car was badly damaged. If a gearbox change was needed and no replacement of the same specification was available, a breach of parc ferme rules could force him to start from the pit lane.

Track conditions after the red flag were not ideal. Apart from Ricciardo improving by one position to move ahead of his team-mate, nobody bettered their personal best, leaving pole to Norris. Verstappen had completed his second flying lap before the stoppage and climbed out early after placing third, just 0.046s away. Carlos Sainz was fourth, Lewis Hamilton fifth and Charles Leclerc sixth. Aston Martin benefited from the sharp fall in temperature: Fernando Alonso, only 14th in FP3, took seventh, with Lance Stroll eighth. The drivers in fourth to sixth were between 0.469s and 0.678s behind pole.

The race was scheduled to start at 21:00 China time (UTC+8) on 21 July and run for 70 laps.