Liam Lawson will start in the mid-field from 12th for tomorrow’s Italian Grand Prix at Monza. The AlphaTauri driver progressed from Q1 for the first time and fell just 0.177 seconds short of qualifying for the top ten.
Carlos Sainz delivered Ferrari the perfect result for the team in their home race, qualifying on pole ahead of Max Verstappen by just 0.013 seconds. Charles Leclerc starts from third, only 0.067 seconds off his teammate’s pole-setting time.
A solid Q1 effort from Lawson saw him advance from 12th, with the Kiwi improving on each of his runs on the hard tyres. Verstappen topped the session over Alex Albon, Leclerc, Yuki Tsunoda and Perez, while Logan Sargeant proved Williams has pace at Monza to go sixth.
Both Alpine’s failed to progress from Q1, with Esteban Ocon suffering floor damage after an off-track venture over gravel mid-way through the session. Both were in the elimination zone ahead of their final runs and failed to improve.
Joining Ocon and Pierre Gasly as early eliminations was Guanyu Zhou, Kevin Magnussen, and Lance Stroll.
Sainz and Leclerc found themselves under investigation following qualifying for exceeding the maximum lap time on their out laps.
Lawson’s qualifying run would come to an end in Q2, the Kiwi falling 0.177 seconds short of progressing to the top ten. He will start next to teammate Yuki Tsunoda on the grid, with Tsunoda missing out on Q3 by just 0.013 seconds to qualify 11th.
Nico Hulkenberg, Valtteri Bottas and Sargeant were the other drivers eliminated, the latter failing to replicate his Q1 pace.
Both cars remained from Ferrari, Red Bull, Mercedes and McLaren in Q3, while Williams had Albon and Aston Martin had Fernando Alonso.
Much to the delight of the crowd, Sainz and Leclerc held the provisional front row following the first runs, topping Verstappen, Leclerc and Albon.
Leclerc went on to better his teammate’s time on his final lap to take provisional pole, only for Verstappen to go .054 seconds quicker. Sainz then crossed the line to better the two-time champion by just 0.013 seconds to deliver pole to Ferrari at their home event.
Better news would come following the session, with stewards declaring no further investigation was necessary from their alleged Q1 breach of the maximum lap time.
Leclerc will start behind Sainz from third and has Russell for company on the second row. Perez and Albon lock out row three, ahead of Piastri, Hamilton, Norris and Alonso, respectively.
The Italian Grand Prix starts at 1.00 am on Monday morning.
Header Image: Getty Images/ Red Bull Content Pool
Well done Liam just keep the car on the track and you’ll do fine right?