Australia: pre-qualifying 2024

 

And so to Oz, which has qualifying and racing on the right days, but at bloody silly times.

I’m sure this won’t be reflected in real pace in either qualifying or the race, but first practice had the top six all covered by less than a tenth, which is quite something. Not only that, the top five were from different teams. Norris was fastest, followed by Verstappen, Russell, Leclerc, Tsunoda, and Perez. Next came Stroll, who was 0.103s off the ultimate pace, and was ahead of Sainz, Hamilton, and Piastri.

Second practice was quite different, with Leclerc quickest, a chunky third of a second ahead of Verstappen. Sainz was half a tenth off the Dutchman, with Stroll and Alonso following. Piastri, Perez, Norris, and Tsunoda rounded out the top 10.

 

At the moment, I still reckon we’ll have the same Verstappen script. But there is a chance Leclerc may spoil his party, on Saturday at least. However, his odds of 2.2 do not tempt at all. Perez at 13 each way in the race may be rather more appealing.

Questions remain, not least whether I’ll try watching live (qualifying at 5am and race at 4am) and if I’ll wake up on time if I try.

I’ve backed Perez, boosted to 14, each way for the race. Be aware if he cocks up qualifying his odds may lengthen, so you may prefer to wait. At the moment, his car remains the best on the grid and while his record at Australia isn’t as good as it is elsewhere, this is still well worth considering, I think.

 

Morris Dancer

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