Kiwi Formula 1 driver Liam Lawson has narrowly missed out on a top-10 start for tonight's Azerbaijan Grand Prix and will line up 12th on the grid.
The Racing Bulls driver fell just 0.177 seconds short of progressing to the final stage of qualifying, with his session ending in Q2.
“We’ve just honestly been slow this weekend,” Lawson said after qualifying.
“We made a step [up] for quali, which was good. The lap was really good up until turn 16.
“I just had no tow as well. I tried to start close to Max, but his out lap was too quick. By the end of the lap he’d pulled away.
"It’s super frustrating watching your delta climb, and you lose all the time you’ve made up."
The weekend marks Lawson's return to his regular Racing Bulls car after a successful three-race stint filling in for the injured Isack Hadjar at Red Bull, where he scored 14 points.
Lawson said he was excited to be "back in my car", although he admitted readjusting after nearly a month behind the wheel of a very different Red Bull had presented a challenge.
He will be eager to make up ground and push for points in tonight's race, with Racing Bulls locked in a tight battle for fifth in the constructors' championship against Alpine.
Russell returns to pole
Meanwhile, George Russell took pole position for the Azerbaijan Grand Prix after Formula 1 standings leader Kimi Antonelli hit the wall in qualifying Friday.
With his teammate Antonelli out of the running, Russell showed why Mercedes is such a big favourite at the Baku track as he went nearly a second faster than anyone else.
“When I crossed the line and I saw the gap. I was shocked. I knew the lap was was great,” Russell said.
Still, he added “you can't discount Kimi” for Saturday's race after Antonelli won from 19th on the grid at his home Italian Grand Prix this month. The 20-year-old Antonelli leads Russell by 81 points.
Ferrari's Charles Leclerc was .837 of a second off the pace in second and Oscar Piastri was third-fastest for McLaren, .001 further back. That was a big turnaround for Piastri after McLaren even resorted to using cable ties to hold together parts of the car's bodywork in a chaotic Friday practice.
“It’s been a little bit of a tricky one for us, but it’s not the first time this year," the Australian said. "I feel like we get to qualifying, we take all the fuel out and the car just comes alive more.”
Isack Hadjar was fourth for Red Bull on his return from injury and no one else got within a second of Russell on a disappointing day for McLaren's Lando Norris in fifth, Ferrari's Lewis Hamilton in sixth and Red Bull's Max Verstappen in eighth.
It's the first pole for Russell since the Austrian Grand Prix in June, which was also his last win. The long straight at Baku favours Mercedes' engine and car design.
Antonelli is set to start Saturday's race in 16th place on the grid after he clipped the wall and damaged a wheel and suspension in the first part of qualifying. He tried to get back to the pits but the team told him to stop because there was too much damage.
The Mercedes driver's previous lap time was enough to reach the second part of qualifying but he was unable to continue.
The Azerbaijan Grand Prix will take place on Saturday (11pm NZT).
- Additional reporting by 1News
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