F1: Oscar Piastri runs second fastest at qualification before harsh grid penalty

Oscar Piastri looked set to start from second on the grid in Imola, only for officials to come down hard on the Australian for an earlier offence. Meanwhile, Daniel Ricciardo has put himself firmly in the race for points.

Oscar Piastri of Australia and McLaren walks in the Paddock prior to final practice ahead of the F1 Grand Prix of Emilia-Romagna at Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari Circuit on May 18, 2024 in Imola, Italy. (Photo by Lars Baron/Getty Images)

Max Verstappen secured his eighth consecutive pole position in qualifying for the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix at Imola on Saturday to equal the record of Ayrton Senna, as McLaren’s Australin driver Oscar Piastri was docked three grid places to plummet from second.

The Red Bull three-time world champion’s dominance in qualifying drew him level with Senna’s run of eight poles, poignantly three decades after the late great Brazilian’s tragic death at the Italian circuit in 1994.

“It’s a great start to the year but also very special 30 years since he passed away at this track,” said Verstappen.

“Of course, very pleased to get pole here and in a way it’s a nice memory to him (Senna), he was an incredible Formula 1 driver especially in qualifying laps as well, so a great day for me and a great day for the team, I’m very very happy.”

Piastri’s McLaren was to have started alongside the unstoppable Dutchman on Sunday after posting the second fastest time 0.074 seconds behind in a tight qualifying session.

However, the Australian was docked three grid places for impeding the Haas of Kevin Magnussen.

The three fastest qualifiers before Piastri (left) was hit with his grid penalty. Picture: Mark Thompson/Getty Images

That promoted McLaren teammate Lando Norris, winner last time out in Miami, to the front row.

The two Ferraris of Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz will set off from the second row with Piastri now alongside the Mercedes of George Russell on the third row.

Yuki Tsunoda’s RB, Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes), Daniel Ricciardo (RB), and Nico Hulkenberg (Haas) rounded out the top 10.

The glaring absentee from the first five rows was the Red Bull of Sergio Perez, who went out in the second qualifying session, the Mexican muttering “what a mess” on the team radio.

Piastri had initially been thrilled to get so close to taking pole. “My lap was a bit scruff in the final corner, but it is so difficult to do a perfect lap at this circuit,” he said before the penalty was handed down.

Norris added: “Not a bad job, it’s all about tiny margins.” After a chaotic third practice on a beautiful sunlit day at the Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari Verstappen was swiftly on the pace and went top after eight minutes in 1:16.013 only to be outpaced within a minute by Piastri and then Norris, the McLarens endorsing their practice speed.

Fernando Alonso’s difficult day continued when his Aston Martin went off at the exit of Tamburello, taking a dive through the gravel, but avoiding any contact with the barriers. He pitted, accepting he could not improve on 20th and last on the grid.

Daniel Ricciardo will start from ninth on the grid. Picture: Rudy Carezzevoli/Getty Images

Hulkenberg then went top for Haas before Verstappen outpaced him along with Leclerc as Q1 ended with Valtteri Bottas of Sauber, Logan Sargeant of Williams Zhou Guanyu of Sauber and Magnussen, in the second Haas, exiting with Alonso.

Hamilton was out early to top Q2 ahead of Russell before the Red Bulls finally found their pace, Verstappen going top in 1:15.386, despite running wide at Rivazza, with Perez second. All were running on softs.

Leclerc then took the initiative with Tsunoda slotting into second place, all proof that Red Bull were not having it their own way - and the top seven all within half a second of the pace.

On their second runs, Verstappen improved to take top spot, but team-mate Perez missed out on the top-ten shootout and was eliminated in 11th along with Esteban Ocon of Alpine, Lance Stroll of Aston Martin, Alex Albon of Williams and Pierre Gasly, sporting a Senna-yellow helmet, in the second Alpine.

The top four were separated by four-tenths of a second for the final runs which saw Verstappen, digging into his reserves of talent, grab pole with a dazzling lap in 1:14.746 - a clear example of an outstanding driver delivering beyond the potential of his car.

McLaren dominate practice

Australian driver Oscar Piastri has led a McLaren one-two in the final practice as the Red Bulls struggled through another session.

Multi-time world champion Max Verstappen posted the sixth-fastest time at the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix while Sergio Perez was 12th before he met the wall during the session.

Aston Martin’s Fernando Alonso also crashed in a different incident.

Verstappen, who sits atop the driver’s championship standings, was 0.837 seconds behind Piastri, who posted a 1:15.529 - the fastest time across all three practices.

He was three-tenths of a second ahead of teammate Lando Norris, and McLaren may be confident they have unlocked the secret to challenging the top teams as they aim to replicate their breakthrough GP victory at Miami earlier this month.

Australia’s Oscar Piastri was fastest in the third practice session. Picture: Getty Images

They’ll face some tough competition from the Prancing Horse as Ferrari duo Carlos Sainz and Charles Leclerc continued their consistent form to be third and fourth.

In a disrupted but dramatic session it was evident that Red Bull were unable to reproduce their normal dominating form, offering the prospect of a straight scrap between the McLaren and Ferrari teams in qualifying later Saturday.

Perez’s late shunt at the Variante Alta led to a late scramble for drivers to set a fast lap time with Norris, upbeat after his maiden win in Miami two weeks ago, showing confidence to produce an improved time.

Verstappen was among those unable to find a quick qualifying-style lap in the final minutes of a confusing session with several drivers involved in entanglements that left many frustrated.

Leclerc was fastest in both previous practices.

Nipping at his heels in the second session, and then ahead of him on Saturday night (AEST) was Piastri, who has become more comfortable in his car.

Fellow Aussie Daniel Ricciardo was 11th in practice session three, finally ahead of teammate Yuki Tsunoda, who was 0.108 seconds behind in 13th.

Originally published as F1: Oscar Piastri runs second fastest at qualification before harsh grid penalty