Hamilton embarrassed by F1 rookie Sargeant as Leclerc takes Las Vegas GP pole

18 November 2023 , 09:02

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Hamilton embarrassed by F1 rookie Sargeant as Leclerc takes Las Vegas GP pole

Charles Leclerc took pole position in a Las Vegas Grand Prix session which saw several big names flatter to deceive.

Lewis Hamilton loves this new street track and would have hoped to at least show enough pace to contend for pole position. But he didn't even make it through to Q3 and had to settle for just 11th fastest on the road.

And he wasn't the only one who failed to reach the top 10. Sergio Perez was fast enough only for 12th, but it places him well at least to be able to score enough points compared to Hamilton to secure second place in the drivers' championship. And McLaren had a horrible night as Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri were both rooted in the bottom five.

But it was a much better night for those that call US races their home. Haas got Kevin Magnussen into Q3 where he impressed, while Logan Sargeant not only reached the top 10 but qualified seventh, just behind team-mate Alex Albon at the end of a session to remember for Williams.

McLaren were not expecting this track to suit their cars but even they would be disappointed with the double Q1 exit they suffered. Piastri was 19th fastest while Norris will be particularly disappointed to have only managed 16th.

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Yuki Tsunoda was slowest overall while Zhou Guanyu and Esteban Ocon were also out. The latter was furious with Max Verstappen, the two having tangled at turn one as they both set about starting their final flying laps, leading to each driver cursing the other over the radio.

Williams were quietly hoping for a double Q3 appearance and they delivered, showing their top speed on the long straights to get both Albon and Sargeant into the top 10. Daniel Ricciardo, Lance Stroll and Nico Hulkenberg were out at their expense, but there were two more big names not appearing in the final part of the session.

Sergio Perez continued his patchy qualifying form by only going 12th quickest. Red Bull opted against sending him out for one final run at the end of Q2, perhaps thinking the Mexican was safe, but in the end his time was only good enough for 12th quickest.

That was only one place behind Hamilton who was struggling to get the best out of his Mercedes car. "Couldn't go faster mate," was his simple radio message after learning his fate, indicating that the seven-time world champion felt he got everything he could out of the W14.

Verstappen was pushing for pole but aborted his final flying lap to settle for third, behind the two Ferraris. Leclerc beat Carlos Sainz to pole, but the Spaniard will slip down to 12th on the grid anyway thanks to a 10-place grid drop.

Full 2023 Las Vegas Grand Prix qualifying result

1. Charles Leclerc - Ferrari
2. Carlos Sainz - Ferrari (Grid penalty to be applied)
3. Max Verstappen - Red Bull
4. George Russell - Mercedes
5. Pierre Gasly - Alpine
6. Alex Albon - Williams
7. Logan Sargeant - Williams
8. Valtteri Bottas - Alfa Romeo
9. Kevin Magnussen - Haas
10. Fernando Alonso - Aston Martin
11. Lewis Hamilton - Mercedes
12. Sergio Perez - Red Bull
13. Nico Hulkenberg - Haas
14. Lance Stroll - Aston Martin (Grid penalty to be applied)
15. Daniel Ricciardo - AlphaTauri
16. Lando Norris - McLaren
17. Esteban Ocon - Alpine
18. Zhou Guanyu - Alfa Romeo
19. Oscar Piastri - McLaren
20. Yuki Tsunoda - AlphaTauri

Daniel Moxon