Piastri “surprised” Red Bull not faster
In the round-up: Oscar Piastri says he expected greater competition from Red Bull in qualifying for the Azerbaijan Grand Prix.
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In brief
Piastri “surprised” Red Bull not faster
After securing a front row start for today’s Azerbaijan Grand Prix with rivals Red Bull only fourth and sixth on the grid with Sergio Perez and Max Verstappen, respectively, McLaren’s Oscar Piastri says he thought that the world champions world be closer to the front in qualifying.
“To be honest, I was a bit surprised Red Bull weren’t a bit further up at the end of Q3,” Piastri said.
“I think our race pace looked good yesterday, but nowadays the top four teams are so close in race pace that qualifying often makes a massive difference. So I’ve got confidence that our car will be quick. But I think there’s definitely seven other cars out on the track that are certainly not any slower.”
Cadillac score first pole in Fuji
Cadillac secured pole position for the first time in the World Endurance Championship by beating Toyota in qualifying in Fuji.
The American marque denied Toyota a home pole at their own circuit as Alex Lynn pipped the best time set by Ryo Hirakawa in the number eight Toyota by just 0.041s in his number two car. He and team mate Earl Bamber, who are racing as a duo this weekend, will lead the field away at the Six Hours of Fuji which starts at 3am UK time.
The number 15 BMW, quickest in Friday practice, starts third, ahead of the number seven Toyota in fourth. The highest-placed Ferrari, the Le Mans winning number 50, starts in seventh.
Sky’s Brookes recovering after surgery
Sky F1 reporter Rachel Brookes says she is “all good” after undergoing emergency appendix surgery in Azerbaijan.
After being absent from Sky’s coverage over the weekend so far, Brookes posted on social media that she had to undergo an emergency appendectomy.
“I landed here Tuesday night and felt poorly,” Brookes wrote. “Thought it was just nasty food poisoning but yesterday found out that I had appendicitis and needed surgery.
“I’ve had the appendectomy and all good. Just want to say a massive thanks to all my colleagues at Sky Sports F1 for stepping up, stepping in to cover and sending me so many messages.”
Brookes says she will return during the United States Grand Prix weekend in Austin in late October.
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Links
Franco on a ”proud moment for everyone” after Baku Quali (Williams)
Colapinto: ”As a team, Williams, I think it’s been a long time since we’ve had both cars in Q3. So I think it’s a proud moment for everyone.”
Goethe penalised following Baku sprint race (F2)
‘During the race, Oliver Goethe made contact with car 16, Hitech driver Amaury Cordeel at turn five. After the race, the stewards examined video evidence, heard from both drivers as well as their team representatives and determined that the MP driver as not wholly but predominantly responsible for the collision. As a result, the stewards handed Goethe a five-second time penalty. With the penalty applied, Goethe remains 21st in the classification.’
James Wharton dominates the first race at the Red Bull Ring (FREC)
‘It was a perfect race for James Wharton at the Red Bull Ring, where the Prema Racing driver, after starting from pole, managed to stay in control from the first to the last lap, securing his second victory of the season in the Formula Regional European Championship by Alpine, achieving this result during the 75th race in the history of the series.’
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Social media
Notable posts from X (formerly Twitter), TikTok and more:
Pole position baby 😘
A good Saturday but we’ve got to finish the job tomorrow in the race, let’s push 💪 pic.twitter.com/RF0ZPDzq1b— Charles Leclerc (@Charles_Leclerc) September 14, 2024
Front row. Looking forward to some racing tomorrow
— Oscar Piastri (@OscarPiastri) September 14, 2024
12 years ago, I was celebrating my win at the European Karting Championship in the Juniors, alongside Max, who took the win in Seniors at my local circuit PFI.
This weekend, PFI is hosting the World Karting Championship and it reminded me of the hard work, the passion, and the… pic.twitter.com/9TXhO1hDNa
— George Russell (@GeorgeRussell63) September 14, 2024
Will 🤝 Lewis. Reunited in Baku pic.twitter.com/4g3p163Xr0
— Mercedes-AMG PETRONAS F1 Team (@MercedesAMGF1) September 14, 2024
In a groundbreaking move, the Azerbaijan Grand Prix has introduced a Women’s Marshal Post at the pivotal Turn 16. This is the third year of this initiative, which puts female marshals at the heart of race operations and highlights their important role in the event 💪
Read… pic.twitter.com/aDnqNHUDXu
— FIA (@fia) September 14, 2024
UPDATE: #INDYNXT qualifying at @NashvilleSuperS has been canceled due to weather.
The lineup for Sunday’s #MusicCityGP will be set by entrant points per the rule book with @17LouisFoster starting on pole. pic.twitter.com/kxz9owY8AH
— INDY NXT by Firestone (@INDYNXT) September 14, 2024
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Happy birthday!
Happy birthday to Siy, Butch27, Warfieldf1 and Sudhi!
