F1 Australian GP live commentary and updates - qualifying
Follow along for the action in qualifying for Formula 1's Australian Grand Prix
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F1 qualifying in Australia: coming soon!
Welcome back! Qualifying for the Australian GP is due to get under way in about 40 minutes' time, and it should be a real thriller!
Grab yourself a coffee if you've woken up early, and come with us on a journey through time and space...
Oliver Bearman, Haas F1 Team
Photo by: Simon Galloway / LAT Images via Getty Images
FP3 recap
Mercedes' George Russell is heading into Formula 1's first qualifying session of the year with the fastest time as he topped a derailed FP3 session at the Australian Grand Prix - as Kimi Antonelli crashed at Turn 2.
Russell and Mercedes finally showed their hand with a brutal last-minute flyer to head Ferrari duo Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc.
FIA U-turns on planned Turn 8 active aero change
Can Antonelli make it out on-track?
After his mammoth shunt towards the end of FP3, Antonelli looked in doubt for qualifying - but the Mercedes team is attempting to stitch the remains of his W17 together.
The engine and gearbox are apparently fine, so it's just the small matter of putting everything together...
Andrea Kimi Antonelli, Mercedes crash
Photo by: Paul Crock / AFP via Getty Images
Mercedes aiming to get Antonelli on-track
Quiet optimism Kimi can make it out for Q1 - a lot of damage, but not quite a full rebuild. FP3 delay is not helping.
[His crash] looks like a combination of bottoming out over a big bump plus the enormous torque of these cars.
Andrea Kimi Antonelli, Mercedes
Photo by: Alastair Staley / LAT Images via Getty Images
Watch: Autosport Explains: F1 Sim Development Driver
10 minutes to Q1
So, here we go - Q1 is coming up soon. We'd expect Aston Martin and Cadillac to take up four of the six spaces in the drop zone - but who's going to join them?
Williams and Alpine seem to be most at risk, but there could still be a surprise exit from the first stage of qualifying.
Franco Colapinto, Alpine, George Russell, Mercedes
Photo by: Sam Bagnall / Sutton Images via Getty Images
Aston Martin's troubles
Of course, Aston Martin has endured a fraught run so far in Australia - but Fernando Alonso's lap in FP3 offered a crumb of comfort that the car isn't absolutely miles off, 3.7s off Russell's pace and ahead of the Cadillacs.
The problem is reliability. Stroll couldn't take part in FP3, and so he'll be aiming to get up to speed if he's able to join in the fun. And even so, the team has suggested that the drivers might not be able to make it to the finish given the car's vibrations are so difficult to contend with.
Fernando Alonso, Aston Martin Racing
Photo by: Lars Baron / Getty Images
Lots of boxes of bits around Antonelli's car - all hands to the pump in getting the car fixed.
Toto Wolff oversees the repairs - perhaps he ought to get in the mix with a socket wrench?
Australian GP Q1 is open for business!
Hulkenberg is on-track first, followed by Albon, the two Haas cars, and Colapinto.
Here we go!
Sainz and Stroll might struggle to get on track too - Sainz stopped on track during FP3, while Stroll missed it entirely.
Hulkenberg opens a lap, aiming to take Audi all the way to Q3 if he can. The pace is there, but now it's all about execution. Deployment is going to be the key differentiator.
Hulkenberg backs off, letting Albon go through. The Thai driver does a 1m21.802s, which will serve as our benchmark - one swiftly beaten by Ollie Bearman and his 1m21.408s.
We were on the cusp of the 1m18s during FP3 - how will we get on as we progress to Q3?
Lindblad sets a 1m21.008s, three tenths clear of Lawson to go top.
Norris is two tenths off after a slide in Turn 3, while Piastri sets a 1m20.552s to go top. Hamilton is second with medium tyres - at least, until Bortoleto sets a 1m20.495s to hit the front.
Here comes Russell on a lap.
Russell posts a 1m19.840s to go quickest by 0.655s. Leclerc follows Hamilton's lead with mediums and goes fourth.
Hadjar goes up to second, 0.6s off Russell's benchmark, until Lindblad moves a shade above his Racing Bulls predecessor.
Piastri now goes second, 0.432s off Russell, until Leclerc goes second...
...as Verstappen goes into the wall at Turn 1!
Verstappen gets out of the car, it's game over.
"The car just locked on the rear axle. Fantastic," he murmurs over the radio. Looks like there's a bit of pain in his right hand, as he shakes it off.
This is good news for Mercedes and Antonelli, who's sitting in the car. He might be ready to go by the time the red flag is rescinded.
Qualifying will resume in a couple of minutes' time, as the Red Bull has been cleared up...
...and Antonelli has made it out of the garage, so he's got a chance of breaking free of the opening stage of qualifying.
And we're back - Norris is first onto the track, followed by Lindblad and Lawson, then Piastri.
No sign of Sainz or Stroll in the pitlane yet, while Perez and Bottas are the only two drivers in the drop zone with a time on the board.
Lawson gets our first post-red improvement on the board, moving up to ninth. Antonelli has been pinged for a pitlane infringement.
Hamilton continues with mediums and he's done a good first sector - and moves up to top spot with a 1m19.811s.
Antonelli, meanwhile, throws up a lap and gets into third off the bat. Impressive stuff, although Russell's looking incredibly quick.
Piastri does a 1m19.664s to go top, but is replaced by Russell's 1m19.507s.
Norris moves up to fourth, half a second off Russell's pace.
Colapinto needs to get a lap in, as he's the wrong side of the cut-off - that being Alonso's lap - which he's able to improve on.
Colapinto gets a lap in at the last moment to dump Alonso out in Q1.
"Thank you guys, you're the best," Antonelli says, having got out of the garage and fired off a competitive time off the bat.
Eliminated in Q1
17. Alonso
18. Perez
19. Bottas
20. Verstappen
21. Sainz
22. Stroll
Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing crash
Photo by: Paul Crock / AFP via Getty Images
Perez and Bottas thank the Cadillac team for their efforts. Although the two fell out of the reckoning in Q1, Perez was only three seconds off the pace, with Bottas a further 0.7s behind him.
Q2 is under way
Now comes the small matter of deciding positions 11-16 on the grid. Everyone except the Mercs, Hulkenberg, and Hadjar are currently on the road.
Hamilton did a purple first sector, but backed off and lets Leclerc through.
The Monegasque sets a 1m20.088s, this time on the soft compound after running mediums in Q1.
Antonelli sets a 1m19.604s, but Russell's lighting up the timing board.
It's a 1m18.934s. That's a big lap - Norris goes third, 0.948s off Russell's effort.
Hadjar moves up to third - meanwhile, Hamilton was quick in the first sector, but his middle sector was quite slow and he's backed out of that one. He visits the weighbridge before his return to the pit garage.
Ferrari, having looked quick all weekend, is finding Q2 a tougher nut to crack. They'll have to burn up another set and go again.
After the first runs, it's Gasly, Bearman, Albon, Hulkenberg, Colapinto, and Hamilton in the drop zone. Hamilton goes out again on fresh softs.
Hulkenberg gets up to ninth on that lap, so he's escaped the drop zone for now.
Hamilton moves up to sixth and thus pushes Bortoleto into the bottom six. Antonelli goes second fastest, half a second off Russell, while Norris doesn't improve.
Leclerc books himself into Q3 with a 1m19.357s, and moves up to second.
Bearman improves but only gets up to 11th - which becomes 12th when Bortoleto moves back into the top 10.
Colapinto can't improve enough to get out of 16th, while Gasly also stays 14th.
Eliminated in Q2
11. Hulkenberg
12. Bearman
13. Ocon
14. Gasly
15. Albon
16. Colapinto
Drivers in Q3
Russell, Leclerc, Antonelli, Piastri, Hadjar, Norris, Hamilton, Lindblad, Lawson, Bortoleto.
Lindblad hits the top 10 in his first F1 qualifying session, while Bortoleto takes Audi into its first Q3 at the first attempt. Impressive stuff.
Arvid Lindblad, Racing Bulls
Photo by: Andy Hone/ LAT Images via Getty Images
Lindblad has a lurid lock-up in the pit entry as Bortoleto has come to a halt, and the Briton needed to take evasive action.
He's been rolled away, so he's not going to be able to take part in Q3. Top nine shootout, then.
Slight delay to the start of Q3 as Bortoleto's Audi was cleared out of the pitlane.
Our remaining nine cars have left the garage, as they're keen to get going for Q3. Norris is first in the queue, ahead of the two Racing Bulls machines.
Time for Q3!
The battle for pole is on. Well, it might be a battle, but George Russell looks to have the run of things so far. Can Ferrari spring a late surprise?
Antonelli's car was released with the cooling fan still attached, which fell out. Red flag once more to retrieve that - which will be made difficult by the fact that someone's run it over.
Norris went into it, and it shattered into a zillion pieces - so, the brooms will get a work out again.
Norris' front wing doesn't appear to be too damaged, apart from a wee scratch on the paintwork. The only thing McLaren's mechanics have to do is wipe it off.
Penalty presumably coming Mercedes' way for letting the car go out in an unsafe condition.
Norris isn't ready to join the front of the queue waiting to leave the pitlane in three minutes' time.
We've got just under 10 minutes remaining, with only Piastri's 1m30s on the board.
Q3 now resumes, with the two Mercedes drivers leading the pack away from Hadjar and Piastri. Norris is now in the queue after getting his front wing taped up.
Antonelli locks up at Turn 3 and skitters across the gravel - he's been in the wars today.
Russell's going for a run now, but it's not the cleanest. He does a 1m19.084s, while Hadjar goes second with a lap 0.6s behind.
The Ferraris will need a second run, while Norris vaults up into second.
