Charles Leclerc of Ferrari gestures after taking pole position in the F1 Australian GP at the Albert Park in Melbourne, Australia, April 9, 2022. /CFP
Charles Leclerc has often struggled around the Albert Park circuit but he finally conquered it on Saturday to take pole in the Australian Grand Prix.
The Ferrari racer from Monaco said it was a track that didn't suit his driving style, but in a measure of how far he has progressed, it all came together in a blistering lap at the death in Melbourne.
It was enough to edge out Red Bull's world champion Max Verstappen, who will start second on Sunday, as the pair provided more evidence that they are the men to beat this season.
Verstappen's teammate Sergio Perez took the third position ahead of the fourth-placed Lando Norris of McLaren.
"I'm happy with my result today. This circuit is really tricky and I've always struggled here in the past. It may not have seemed like it this weekend because we've been quite fast, but I've done a lot of work to optimize my performance," Leclerc said.
Racing cars during the F1 Australian GP qualifying in Melbourne, Australia, April 9, 2022. /CFP
Leclerc's teammate Carlos Sainz took the ninth position in qualifying.
"The lap at the end, we had a problem with the starter, we couldn't start the car – we had to go out three minutes later to when we were planning to go out. I couldn't prepare the tire. I couldn't warm up the tire. Everything was rushed, and I had to do the lap on freezing tires, and it was a horrible lap for us. Incredibly unlucky; everything that could have gone wrong in Q3 went wrong, especially because I was in the fight for pole position the whole qualifying," Sainz said.
Mercedes racers Lewis Hamilton (R) and George Russell talk during a fans forum ahead of the F1 Australian GP qualifying in Melbourne, Australia, April 9, 2022. /CFP
Mercedes racers Lewis Hamilton and George Russell took the fifth and sixth positions respectively.
"I think we did a decent job to get to where we are because we had a bigger deficit yesterday," said Hamilton. "My last lap, I felt like there was more in it, so I had this unexpected step of grip and didn't get to maximize it, but I am still naturally happy with it."
Alpine racer Fernando Alonso crashed in the qualifying session and took 10th position.
"We lost the hydraulics on the car, so we lost the gear change and also the power steering and everything, so yes, I think we could [have fought] for pole position today," Alonso said.
"We fought for many years for that possibility and it's amazing that we've been so unlucky in these first three races of the Championship, but I was doing, I think, probably one of the best weekends in years and it is frustrating now," he added.
Zhou Guanyu of Alpha Romeo drives during the F1 Australian GP qualifying in Melbourne, Australia, April 9, 2022. /CFP
Alfa Romeo's Chinese racer Zhou Guanyu took 14th position.
"I'm happy about my performance, all things considered. We struggled a bit with the balance in qualifying, but we cleared a very tight battle with our rivals," said Zhou.
Leclerc, Zhou and Scuderia AlphaTauri's Yuki Tsunoda were investigated over whether they slowed excessively during qualifying.
According to the stewards, Leclerc "breached" the minimum time between the two Safety Car lines, while Zhou "slightly breached" it. So the two racers were cleared.
In Zhou's case, a report of the International Automobile Federation (FIA) read, "During the lap there was heavy traffic and Zhou took effort to ensure that he did not impede other drivers on push laps. These efforts slowed his lap time. As a result, the minimum time was slightly breached. The Stewards accept the driver's rationale for his actions and find that he acted reasonably under the circumstances. Therefore, take no further action."
In Leclerc's case, another FIA report read, "Leclerc started a lap that was intended to be a cool down lap, not an in lap, which would not be subject to the minimum time restriction of the regulation. Part way through the lap, the decision was made to come in. During the lap there was heavy traffic and Leclerc took effort to ensure that he did not impede other drivers on push laps. These efforts significantly slowed his lap time. As a result, the minimum time was breached. The Stewards accept the driver's rationale for his actions and that he acted reasonably under the circumstances. Therefore, take no further action."
Yuki Tsunoda of Scuderia AlphaTauri during qualifying for the F1 Australian GP in Melbourne, Australia, April 9, 2022. /CFP
In Tsunoda's case, the stewards ruled that "Tsunoda alleged breach of Article 33.4 of the FIA Formula One Sporting Regulations and noncompliance with Race Director's Event Notes 4, driving unnecessarily slowly on an in-lap at 17:01."
Alex Albon was dropped to the back of the grid for the Australian Grand Prix because there was not enough fuel in his Williams to provide a test sample after Saturday qualifying, officials said.
The F1 website reported that Albon "stopped out on track after dropping out of Q1" and that Williams "were later unable to provide the required 1.0-litre fuel sample to the FIA."
An aerial view of the Albert Park in Melbourne, Australia, April 9, 2022. /CFP
The circuit, Albert Park, has undergone its most significant changes since it first hosted a race in 1996, with the track fully resurfaced.
Seven corners have been modified and two removed this year, reducing the number of turns and offering better overtaking opportunities.
(With input from AFP)