After mixed practice sessions, Sebastian Vettel had a flawless first Q3 qualifying lap and will be on pole for the 2018 Azerbaijan Grand Prix.
For the second ever Formula 1 Azerbaijan Grand Prix and third ever race at Baku City Circuit in Baku, Azerbaijan, Sebastian Vettel will start on pole. Friday showed a mix for the title-contending teams, with Mercedes (Valtteri Bottas) and Red Bull Racing (Daniel Ricciardo) topping FP1 and FP2, respectively, while the championship leading drivers, Sebastian Vettel and Lewis Hamilton, struggled for pace on day one in the Land of Fire.
Free Practice 3 saw a return to the status quo of sorts, as Vettel and Hamilton led the field in a red-flagged final practice, while FP2 leader Ricciardo abandoned his final flying lap and finished P12 due to traffic.
Bottas rounded out the top five in the final practice session in P5, with the top 10 showing the pace of Mercedes-powered teams, Force India (P6 and P9) and Williams (P8 and P10). Haas’ Kevin Magnussen was the lone Ferrari-powered customer in the top 10, as he finished in P7 in the final practice session.
Heading into qualifying with the field as mixed as it was, it was anyone’s chance for pole position in Baku. On a single flying lap, whichever driver is able to make the least amount of mistakes or get the most from their car would be on pole for the 2018 Azerbaijan Grand Prix.
Qualifying 1
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Vettel’s Ferrari splits the Sauber pair leading into the first qualifying session. On his out lap, Romain Grosjean went into the run-off area and reported that his Haas lost gear and the team told him to stop. Sauber set the first times, but Magnussen tops the speed chart early with a lap at 1:45.178. Of the front-runners, Kimi Raikkonen took P1 early, with a lap at 1:42.985. Midway through the session, Hamilton took P2 with a lap at 1:42.693 after Raikkonen improved with a lap at 1:42.538.
Pierre Gasly went into the turn 15 run-off area after avoiding teammate Brendon Hartley, who was slow at turn 15 with a puncture. Sauber’s Charles Leclerc finished the session P11, giving the rookie his best qualifying run of the year so far and putting him in Q2. Williams’ Lance Stroll take the final position in the session, eliminating McLaren’s Stoffel Vandoorne.
Eliminated in Q1: Vandoorne, Gasly, Marcus Ericsson, Hartley, Grosjean (no time)
Qualifying 2
Esteban Ocon, Bottas, and Fernando Alonso were the first out. Mercedes, Ferrari, and Red Bull took the supersoft tire for their first runs in Q2, which is the best tire and the most likely race tire. Raikkonen took to turn 15’s run-off area. Bottas took P1 first in the session with a lap at 1:42.679. Max Verstappen took P2 0.222 seconds behind Bottas. Raikkonen went off again but got going shortly after. Hamilton improved to take P1 with a lap at 1:42.676. Sergey Sirotkin was P8.
Stroll took P7 in his first flying lap, putting Leclerc into the elimination zone. Raikkonen took P1 on the ultrasoft tire. He’ll start on the purple-stripe tire while his competition will be on the red-stripe supersofts tomorrow. Alonso couldn’t make Q3 and finished P13. Ricciardo barely made it through to Q3, besting Stroll by only a tenth of a second. Hulkenberg quietly made it into Q3 but will drop five places on the starting grid due to a gearbox change.
Eliminated in Q2: Stroll, Sirotkin, Alonso, Leclerc, Magnussen
Qualifying 3
Ocon and Ricciardo took to the track first. Verstappen set the first Q3 time with a lap at 1:42.017. He was followed by his teammate Ricciardo. Bottas took P1 and then Hamilton took P1. However, Ferrari’s Vettel beat them all with a lap at 1:41.498 for provisional pole. Raikkonen could only post P6 on his first run. Hamilton improved, but his best time is still 0.179 seconds behind Vettel’s best time. Raikkonen had a moment at turn 16 and had to settle for P6. Ricciardo improved and jumped Verstappen for P4. None of the front-runners improve and Vettel’s first run time is good enough for pole.
Provisional starting grid for the 2018 Azerbaijan Grand Prix
| Rank | Driver | Car |
| 1 | Sebastian Vettel | #5, Scuderia Ferrari, Ferrari |
| 2 | Lewis Hamilton | #44, Mercedes-AMG Petronas Motorsport, Mercedes |
| 3 | Valtteri Bottas | #77, Mercedes-AMG Petronas Motorsport, Mercedes |
| 4 | Daniel Ricciardo | #3, Aston Martin Red Bull Racing, Renault |
| 5 | Max Verstappen | #33, Aston Martin Red Bull Racing, Renault |
| 6 | Kimi Raikkonen | #7, Scuderia Ferrari, Ferrari |
| 7 | Esteban Ocon | #31, Sahara Force India, Mercedes |
| 8 | Sergio Perez | #11, Sahara Force India, Mercedes |
| 9 | Nico Hulkenberg* | #27, Renault Sport, Renault |
| 10 | Carlos Sainz Jr. | #55, Renault Sport, Renault |
| 11 | Lance Stroll | #18, Williams Martini Racing, Mercedes |
| 12 | Sergey Sirotkin | #35, Williams Martini Racing, Mercedes |
| 13 | Fernando Alonso | #14, McLaren, Renault |
| 14 | Charles Leclerc | #16, Alfa Romeo Sauber, Ferrari |
| 15 | Kevin Magnussen | #20, Haas, Ferrari |
| 16 | Stoffel Vandoorne | #2, McLaren, Renault |
| 17 | Pierre Gasly | #10, Scuderia Toro Rosso, Honda |
| 18 | Marcus Ericsson | #9, Alfa Romeo Sauber, Ferrari |
| 19 | Brendon Hartley | #28, Scuderia Toro Rosso, Honda |
| 20 | Romain Grosjean | #8, Haas, Ferrari |
*Subject to five-place grid penalty
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Vettel’s first Q3 time was good enough for pole, while his teammate struggled in qualifying and the qualified in P6. Hamilton starts second with his teammate Bottas right behind him in third. Are Mercedes back? Has Baku exposed Raikkonen? And how will Vettel react with the Silver Arrows breathing down his neck going into turn 1? Tune in to the race at 8:05 am ET on ESPN2 on Sunday, April 29 to find out.