Verstappen was only 0.123s ahead of Sainz, who couldn't improve on his first run and finished third by 0.129s.
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In a qualifying session that went down to the wire in Bahrain, Charles Leclerc took the first pole position of the 2022 Formula One World Championship, ahead of reigning champion Max Verstappen and Carlos Sainz. In Q1, Ferarri’s Leclerc was the fastest, but Red Bull’s Verstappen fought back in Q2, qualifying for the top-10 shootout in one go. In Q3, the stage was set for a showdown between the champion and the prancing horse.
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Leclerc then set a new track record of 1m 30.558s, securing his second Bahrain Grand Prix pole. Verstappen was only 0.123s ahead of Sainz, who couldn’t improve on his first run and finished third by 0.129s. Perez, Verstappen’s teammate, finished fourth in a distant P4.
After the first runs, Leclerc and Sainz were virtually neck-and-neck for P1, with Verstappen following closely behind. Preliminary pole position went to Sainz, who was followed by Leclerc and then Verstappen, with the trio separated by only 0.056s. However, Leclerc improved in the second run while Sainz did not. With a time of 1m 30.556s, the Monegasque driver earned his first pole position since the Azerbaijan Grand Prix in 2021, and his second in Bahrain. Verstappen was 0.123s off the pace at the flag, while Sainz was 0.129s back in third.
Mercedes qualified in Q3 – the only Mercedes-powered cars to do so – but were unable to qualify in the front row. Lewis Hamilton finished fifth, while Valtteri Bottas, a former teammate, finished a surprising sixth for Alfa Romeo.
Both Haas drivers qualified in Q2 for the first time since the 2019 Brazilian Grand Prix, but Kevin Magnussen qualified seventh, ahead of Alpine’s Fernando Alonso. Mercedes’ George Russell finished ninth, with AlphaTauri’s Pierre Gasly rounding out the top ten. Lando Norris (P13) of McLaren and Esteban Ocon (P11) of Alpine were both eliminated unexpectedly in Q2, with Mick Schumacher of Haas splitting the two for P12.
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On his first Williams appearance, Alex Albon qualified 14th, while Alfa Romeo rookie Zhou Guanyu qualified 15th in his debut. This came at the expense of Yuki Tsunoda of AlphaTauri, both Aston Martin drivers (substitute Nico Hulkenberg 17th and Lance Stroll 19th), and McLaren’s Daniel Ricciardo. Last on the grid for Williams was Nicholas Latifi.
