The Australian Grand Prix continued with a first qualifying session full of surprises.
After Ferrari's surprising success in the third free practice session, the question was whether anyone could repeat it. After the first fast laps in Q1, the order was: two Ferraris, two Red Bulls, two McLarens, but the track quickly improved. As a result, the composition of the leading field remained unchanged, but there were some interesting changes in the middle. Carlos Sainz, Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez were at the front, while Nico Hülkenberg, Pierre Gasly, Daniel Ricciardo and Guanyu Zhou were the ones who retired.
The first moments of Q2 were all about Red Bull Racing, and this weekend, for the first time, it looked like RB would show their true strength. Of course, this was also due to the new compounds, as Sainz immediately returned to the lead as soon as he was fitted with the new soft tyres. The Mercedes, which had been terrible up until that point, also started to come alive and it looked like both Lewis Hamilton and George Russell could make it to Q3. In the end, Lewis Hamilton, along with Alexander Albon, Valtteri Bottas, Kevin Magnussen and Esteban Ocon, were the surprise absentees.
It was Q3, which promised to be the most exciting end to the season so far, and we can say that we were not disappointed. For Red Bull fans, that is, as the Austrian team continued its familiar game of pulling and pulling away. New engine plus power or not, Verstappen's team only showed its true potential in the final stages of qualifying, raising false hopes in the opposing camp. Carlos Sainz, who had an incredible comeback and did a sensational job throughout the weekend, looked like a worthy opponent, but in the end he was unable to take the lead from Max Verstappen.
