Verstappen is the first driver to take pole at the first five races since 1999, Red Bull achieve their 100th pole position and Hamilton exits in Q1. Here are the facts and statistics from qualifying at the 2024 Chinese Grand Prix.
VERSTAPPEN ON POLE FOR THE 2024 CHINESE GRAND PRIX
For the sixth consecutive race weekend, Max Verstappen secured pole position at the 2024 Chinese Grand Prix. This is now the longest pole streak of Verstappen’s career. This is the 13th time in Formula 1 history that a driver has taken six poles in a row. Verstappen is the ninth different driver to achieve the feat, after Niki Lauda, Ayrton Senna, Nigel Mansell, Alain Prost, Mika Hakkinen, Michael Schumacher, Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg.
With pole at the 2024 Chinese Grand Prix, Verstappen became the first driver in 25 years to take pole at all of the first five races of the year. Mika Hakkinen was the last driver to do so, in 1999. Verstappen is the fifth driver to do so in total, after Ayrton Senna, Nigel Mansell, Alain Prost and Hakkinen.
The 2024 Chinese Grand Prix marked Red Bull’s 100th pole position in Formula 1. Red Bull are the sixth constructor to reach the milestone, after Ferrari, Lotus, Williams, McLaren and Mercedes. This was Red Bull’s fourth pole position at the Chinese Grand Prix.
Verstappen became the seventh different driver to have taken pole position at Shanghai International Circuit. The track is the 21st different venue at which Verstappen has secured pole position. He is only the fourth driver to have taken pole at as many as 21 different circuits, overtaking Nigel Mansell and Ayrton Senna on the list of most circuits at which a driver has taken pole.
This was Verstappen’s first top four qualification at Shanghai International Circuit.
Verstappen reached Q3 for the 169th time in his career, overtaking Felipe Massa for fifth in the list of most Q3 appearances since the knockout system was introduced in 2006.
This is the first time that five different drivers have taken pole at five consecutive Chinese Grands Prix, as well as the first time that three different teams have taken pole in three consecutive Shanghai races.
IN THE TOP 10
Qualifying second for the 2024 Chinese Grand Prix, Sergio Perez qualified on the front row at consecutive races for the first time since the start of the 2023 season.
Perez recorded his best Chinese Grand Prix qualifying result to date, having never previously qualified in the top six in Shanghai.
This was the first time since 2014 that Perez was out-qualified by a team-mate at the Chinese Grand Prix.
Verstappen and Perez secured Red Bull’s first front row lockout at the Chinese Grand Prix since 2010.
Setting the third fastest time in Q3, Fernando Alonso recorded his best qualifying result of the season to date at the 2024 Chinese Grand Prix.
Fernando Alonso qualified in the top ten at the Chinese Grand Prix for the 12th time, equalling Kimi Raikkonen and Lewis Hamilton for the most top ten qualifications at Shanghai International Circuit.
This was Alonso’s first top ten qualification at the Chinese Grand Prix since 2014 and matched his best qualifying result at the track since 2009.
With Alonso reaching Q3, the Silverstone-based team reached 250 Q3 appearances (under all their guises, from Midland to Aston Martin) since the knockout system was introduced in 2006.
Alonso’s third place marks the first time that a driver for the Silverstone-based team has ever qualified in the top six at the Chinese Grand Prix.
With both Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri progressing into the top ten shootout, this was the first time since 2012 that both McLaren drivers reached Q3 at the Chinese Grand Prix. Norris became the first McLaren driver since Lewis Hamilton in 2012 to qualify in the top three for the Chinese Grand Prix, while this was the first time since 2011 that both McLaren drivers qualified in the top five at the track.
Oscar Piastri’s fifth place in qualifying for the 2024 Chinese Grand Prix equalled his best qualifying result of the year to date.
McLaren reached Q3 with both cars for the sixth consecutive race. This is the team’s longest double Q3 appearance in almost 12 years. McLaren last reached Q3 with both cars at six consecutive races between the 2012 German and Japanese Grands Prix.
Charles Leclerc out-qualified his team-mate for the first time since the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix – and out-qualified Carlos Sainz for the first time since the season-opening Bahrain Grand Prix.
With seventh place, Carlos Sainz recorded his worst qualifying result of the year to date – though it was his best qualifying result to date in China.
The 2024 Chinese Grand Prix marks the first time since 2012 that neither Ferrari driver qualified in the top five in Shanghai.
Nico Hulkenberg recorded his best qualifying result of the season so far with ninth place. This was his second Q3 appearance of the year, having last qualified in the top ten at the season-opener.
This was Hulkenberg’s fifth consecutive Q3 appearance at the Chinese Grand Prix. Since 2013, 2015 is the only time that the German has not qualified in the top ten at Shanghai International Circuit.
Hulkenberg equalled the Haas team’s best-ever qualifying result at the Chinese Grand Prix. Kevin Magnussen qualified ninth with the team for the last race at the track in 2019.
Valtteri Bottas recorded his – and the Sauber team’s – first Q3 appearance since the 2023 Las Vegas Grand Prix. He continued his streak of appearing in every Q3 session at the Chinese Grand Prix since 2014.
Bottas’ tenth place marked the first Q3 appearance for a Sauber driver at the Chinese Grand Prix since both drivers qualified in the top ten in 2015.
OUT IN Q2
For the first time this year, both Alpine drivers appeared in Q2. Pierre Gasly made it out of Q1 for the first time this season, while Esteban Ocon continued his record of out-qualifying his team-mate at every race so far in 2024.
Both Gasly and Ocon recorded their best qualifying result of the year to date.
This was only the third time since the current qualifying system was introduced in 2006 that neither of the Enstone-based team’s drivers reached Q3 at the Chinese Grand Prix. It also happened in 2007 and 2016.
Daniel Ricciardo out-qualified his team-mate for the first time this year. Qualifying 12th, this was the first time since his first full F1 season, in 2012, that Ricciardo failed to reach Q3 or qualify in the top seven at the Chinese Grand Prix.
Alex Albon continued his record of exiting in Q2 at every race so far in 2024. He equalled his worst qualifying result of the year so far, with 14th place.
OUT IN Q1
Lewis Hamilton recorded the 11th Q1 exit of his career at the 2024 Chinese Grand Prix. Qualifying 18th, this marked the first time he exited in Q1 since the 2022 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix and his worst qualifying performance since qualifying 20th at the 2017 Brazilian Grand Prix.
18th is Hamilton’s second-worst qualifying result in China. His worst is 22nd place, which is where he qualified for the 2016 Chinese Grand Prix. Those are the only two occasions on which Hamilton has not reached Q3 at this venue.
With 17th place, Kevin Magnussen equalled his worst Chinese Grand Prix qualifying result to date.
Yuki Tsunoda ended a streak of three consecutive Q3 appearances with his first Q1 elimination of the 2024 season. He recorded his first back row qualification since the 2023 Las Vegas Grand Prix.
Logan Sargeant set the 20th and slowest lap time in qualifying for the first time this year.
