Marhaba, MiniFans! The last qualifying session of the season is upon us and it will determine how everyone, but more importantly, the three title contenders will stand in tomorrow’s grid. The weekend so far gives a bit of an advantage to Norris, who’s managed to edge out Verstappen in every free practice, with Piastri further away from them. However, this doesn’t have to set the tone for the most important sessions of the weekend, but we can ony proceed to watch and see what will happen in one of the tightest qualifying session of the season.
Alpine was the first on track, opening up the pitlane for the rest of the gird. Slowly but surely, they started getting company, of which the main attraction was Hamilton. The seven-time world champion had crashed in FP3 and needed to verify whether the car had been thoroughly checked and fixed. The first sets of laps left the Saubers on top, but Verstappen coming out easily wiped them from the priviledge positions, being joined by Alonso in second and neither being beaten by Norris. The surprise came a bit later, when Bearman shot up to first before Russell was barely faster than him in a session where barely two tenths separated the top 8. Surprisingly, after everyone was done with their first stint, Piastri was the top McLaren, but seeing Bearman in second was a sign of what was to come: a generalised faster best personal lap based on an incredible track improvement.
After a not-so-good free practices run (having even missed the first due to having to concede his seat to a young driver), Piastri was starting to show up, hitting Norris with half a second in the second stint, which added to the four drivers that split them, must have, at least, start making the Brit a bit nervous after his almost perfect run in free practice. The track evolution meant that the fight to get through wasn’t over until the final seconds ticked down and everyone crossed the finish line, which once again sadly meant that Hamilton wouldn’t make it through, due to Bortoleto managing to scrape by, leaving him out of Q2 for the third consecutive time. The eliminated drivers in Q1 were Hamilton (P16), Albon (P17), Hulkenberg (P18), Gasly (P19) and Colapinto (P20).
Q2 was kicked off by Verstappen, who fitted a used set and went down the track on his own, checking the track under everyone’s careful eye. Half of the remaining cars joined him at the start, mostly those who had Q2 as their last session in the books, but his time soon convinced the rest to do the same. The split between those needing to do well in Q3 and those merely hoping to get through was clear in their tyre choice for their first run, with the former going all out with fresh sets and the latter mostly saving a set and settling for used.
Verstappen remained on top of the timing tower until Russell displaced him by barely two hundedths, but the Red Bull’s time was still quicker than both McLarens, this time with Norris being a couple tenths faster than Piastri. The second stint was a bit wilder, with times being improved in an unexpected pattern due to the order on the track, meaning there was a time with four cars in between Norris and Piastri but without the Australian in any real danger despite dropping to eight on the tower. The biggest worry was somewhere else, as both McLaren had used three sets of softs, whereas Verstappen and Russell had only used up two. The eliminated drivers in Q2 were Bearman (P11), Sainz (P12), Lawson (P13), Antonelli (P14) and Stroll (P15).
Q3 was the star of the show. Only three cars really mattered and it wasn’t quite clear how they’d fare, only that Verstappen had one more new set than both McLarens and that Russell might become the fourth player in a battle only meant for three. Verstappen was the first one to attack, taking advantage of his extra set and a tiny tow from Tsunoda. Setting an already fast time that could easily be a contender for pole, Norris could only match the Red Bull’s Q2 time, whereas Piastri managed to be a tenth faster than his teammate. Russell’s small mistake, which was so close to the wall that it could have become scary very easily, dropped him in fifth.
The second stint was kickstarted by Tsunoda, probably getting ready for another tow, while Russell asked to be let out to coincide with Verstappen, as he was sure he might be granted a tow in order to try and split him from the McLarens. Piastri was the first to start his lap, but his time wasn’t fast enough to beat Verstappen’s first sector. Norris’ wasn’t either, but the Red Bul did lower his own time. The second sector went in a similar manner, leaving both around a tenth and a half away from the current best time as Verstappen lowered it again. The thrid sector was the same exact story, with both McLaren managing to lower their times and inverse their positions, with Norris edging Piastri out, but Verstappen was too quick for both of them, while Russell had a bit of a moment in the last corner, only allowing him to be fourth. Snatching pole and doing exactly what Verstappen had to do, with two laps worthy of the best spot on the grid for Sunday.
The last qualifying session of the season went mostly as expected. The title contenders fought for the best spots on the grid, going down to the wire trying to secure the best possible result for the start on Sunday. Verstappen seemed to have something extra over McLaren during the whole session, and when it mattered most, his experience helped against the newbies, not even allowing them to breathe in his direction. For now, doing everything in his hand doesn’t seem like it will be enough to clinch a fifth title, as he needs some help from McLaren messing up or Russell stepping up, but one thing’s for sure: The fight isn’t over for the Flying Dutchman.
MiniDrivers
2025 Abu Dhabi Mini Prix
Qualifying
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