The qualifying for one of the most spectacular events of the season is now over. There were many twists and surprises at the end of the three short qualifying sessions for the Las Vegas Grand Prix, with an unexpected outsider securing third place. In addition to Pierre Gasly‘s surprise, the performance of Mercedes was confirmed, with George Russell taking pole position. Let’s see, in the telemetry analysis of qualifying, where George Russell made the difference in Las Vegas.
The complex track conditions made the Las Vegas qualifying extremely tricky for all the drivers. The track surface and air temperatures “slowed down” the performance of several cars. However, the cold did not stop George Russell’s W15, which grabbed pole from Carlos Sainz by a few thousandths.
The big difference, compared to Ferrari, lies in the first sector, a weak point for the SF-24 throughout 2024. This problem was accentuated by the low temperatures, which slowed down the tire warm-up process. Both drivers had to complete more than one preparation lap to bring the tires into the right window. Both Carlos Sainz and Charles Leclerc prepared their fast lap with two warm-up laps and fuel on board.
Source: f1ingenerale
Source: f1ingenerale
The first real critical point of the circuit is the fast right-hand corner leading onto the first straight with DRS. Here, it’s important to exit as strongly as possible to avoid being attacked in sector 5. In the comparison between George Russell and the two Ferraris, a huge difference emerges—three-tenths over Carlos Sainz and six-tenths over Charles Leclerc.
Compared to the two SF-24 drivers, George Russell did not experience any speed drops, but only a slight “stagnation” where his speed remained constant before picking up again. George Russell hit 225 km/h versus the 221 km/h of the two Ferraris, but Carlos Sainz and Charles Leclerc were forced to lift the throttle to avoid losing control of their cars. With much stronger tire grip compared to Ferrari, George Russell was able to exit towards turn four at over 235 km/h, compared to the 225 km/h of Carlos Sainz and Charles Leclerc.
Sector 2 telemetry analysis, Las Vegas
Source: f1ingenerale
The section under the Las Vegas sphere shows a good balance between Ferrari and Mercedes, partly due to the SF-24’s tire window entry. This is demonstrated by the low-speed grip expressed by Ferrari. Carlos Sainz and Charles Leclerc chose to slightly sacrifice the entry to turn 7 in order to exit better at turn 8 and head towards turn 9.
Turn 12 Las Vegas
Source: f1ingenerale
The exit from turn 12, as mentioned yesterday, is crucial for attacking or trying to defend. Between George Russell, Charles Leclerc, and Carlos Sainz, the acceleration shows some differences. Leclerc had a slight snap on approach, but the excellent traction of the SF-24 and the hybrid deployment allowed him to recover well and achieve the best sector time in the second sector and a great lap time in the third. The Mercedes was much more inconsistent, probably because the tire was very worn by the end of the lap.
Source: f1ingenerale
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