Despite a strong showing from Max Verstappen in the early stages of Q3, a last-minute surge by the Australian, yielded a time just 0.034s clear of the opposition. The sixth time this season, pole position has been decided by less than a tenth of a second.
Behind them, George Russell reinforced his claim to the title of ‘Mr. Saturday’ with third. The Mercedes driver coming to within two tenths of a second of Piastri despite opting to run the medium tyres as opposed to the softs. Pirelli have brought the C4, C5 and C6 tyres to Imola, the softest in their range. As a result, several drivers complained of excessive wear on the soft compound tyres which, in many cases struggled to complete a single flying lap without graining. That said, it was a lack of outright pace as opposed to tyre wear that proved to be the thorn in Lando Norris’ side. The British driver bluntly stated that he simply ‘wasn’t quick enough’ after settling for fourth on the grid.
Aston Martin’s first major upgrades of 2025 seem to have yielded results (at least on Saturday). Both cars made it into Q3 for the first time this season with Lance Stroll in eighth and Fernando Alonso in fifth, the two-time world champion describing the result as ‘confirmation’ of the new parts’ efficacy. Williams’ strong form showed no signs of easing up with Carlos Sainz qualifying sixth, one place ahead of his teammate Alex Albon, while Isack Hadjar put in another understated but nevertheless commendable performance to secure P9.
Ferrari were undoubtably the biggest shock in qualifying. In the first of two home races, the Scuderia failed to get either car into Q3. Charles Leclerc only managing 11th, while Lewis Hamilton was 12th. In his post session interview, Leclerc could do little more than apologise for the team’s performance, while Hamilton felt the result was not indicative of the recent progress he believes the team has made.
Another home hero with little to celebrate was Andrea Kimi Antonelli. The Mercedes protégé could only manage 13th after a trouble session in which he struggled for both grip and rhythm. Gabriel Bortoleto made it into Q2 with 14th, a result he saw as more of a surprise than his last Q2 appearance in Miami. Having been announced as Alpine’s race driver in place of Jack Doohan earlier in the week, all eyes were on Franco Colapinto. However, the Argentinian’s return to Formula 1 did not get off to a flying start. A heavy crash in Q2 left him stranded in 15th and left his mechanics with a seismic repair job ahead of the grand prix on Sunday. Liam Lawson and Nico Hulkenberg will line up 16th and 17th respectively, ahead of the two Haas’, Estaban Ocon an eye-catching three tenths of a second clear of his teammate Ollie Bearman. Yuki Tsunoda will start at the back having crashed out heavily in Q1. A fraction too much kerb unsettled the car and sent him into a barrel roll. His first Q1 exit as a Red Bull Driver, Tsunoda has his work cut out of he’s to threaten the points paying positions on Sunday.
