In Baku, Ferrari secured their second pole of the 2024 Formula 1 season, counting only those that have been secured on track, without the penalties received by rivals. It seems strange to say this for a team competing for the Constructors’ Championship, whose approach, both during the development of the SF-24 and in preparation for race weekends, has always prioritized race performance over qualifying. Oscar Piastri’s McLaren prevented an all-Ferrari front row, promising another race challenge between the Woking and Maranello teams. Once again, Red Bull was distant, following the illusion of Friday’s performance.
Ferrari heats up
In the lead-up to the race, much was said about the similarities between the Azerbaijan track and Ferrari’s car, which feels more at ease on the short, slow corners of street circuits compared to the wide, long curves of European tracks, where the SF-24’s shortcomings were exposed in the summer. However, the track alone doesn’t explain the pole position, nor does Charles Leclerc’s affinity with the Eurasian circuit, now securing his fourth pole at the 6.003-kilometre Baku City Circuit.
This latest pole position holds even more value because it was achieved by a Ferrari that is less impressive on a single lap compared to previous Red cars. The SF-24 has a different design, as well as a different way of working the tires. The 2024 Ferrari has often struggled to extract peak performance from the Pirelli tires, especially on smooth, low-grip surfaces like the one in Azerbaijan.
Between the smooth asphalt, moderate temperatures, and low downforce setup, the conditions in Baku could have easily troubled Ferrari. Historically, Ferrari has had difficulty bringing the tires up to temperature on a single lap, which has cost them dearly on several occasions. This was seen, for instance, with Mercedes, where Hamilton asked the team to raise the temperature of the tire blankets. Ferrari, however, didn’t face such difficulties. The excellent times posted by Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz in the first sector, second only to Sergio Perez, indicated great tire preparation. The same dynamic was observed at Monza, reversing the trend from the first half of the 2024 Formula 1 season. Specific setup choices partly explain what happened, but there’s a sense that Ferrari has made a significant leap in tire preparation.
The right compromise
Part of the credit for the pole also goes to an excellent aero-mechanical setup choice by Maranello. Until Saturday morning’s practice, the Ferraris were showing great speed on the long straight of the third sector, but losing ground in the twisty middle section, especially compared to Red Bull. However, in qualifying, the differences narrowed, with the teams converging in their setup choices.
In the end, Ferrari found the best compromise. The choice didn’t just take into account the drag on the straights, but also the stiffness of the suspension needed to support a higher downforce level. Ferrari’s mechanical qualities fully emerged on the bumpy streets of Baku, with Max Verstappen talking about a car that was bouncing everywhere, and George Russell echoing similar complaints on the straights and under braking. In contrast, Ferrari drivers had virtually no complaints, confirming that the SF-24 is still the best car at handling rough surfaces, especially at low speeds. This also highlights the excellent setup choice made by the team.
McLaren is present
Between the two Ferrari cars sits Oscar Piastri’s McLaren, in second place despite the Australian’s dissatisfaction with his lap. Once again in Baku, the MCL38 shows significant potential, increasing the frustration over Lando Norris’s elimination in Q1, the result of yet another mistake. After Spa and Monza, McLaren confirms its competitiveness on low-downforce tracks, which were prohibitive just a year ago. The frustration lies in not being able to fully capitalize on the advantage over Red Bull, with a highly competitive Ferrari on this type of circuit. In the race, however, the Woking team will have its cards to play. Friday’s simulations weren’t as competitive as Ferrari’s, but Piastri’s aggressive approach at the start of the stint, which affected tire degradation, can be easily corrected.
Mercedes is once again leaning on George Russell, who performed well in qualifying at the Baku City Circuit with a car that hasn’t been as competitive in the races lately. Lewis Hamilton struggled more, despite benefiting from his teammate’s slipstream, while George Russell had a clear track. Moreover, Mercedes seems to be running with significantly less downforce, which won’t be helpful for the race. On the plus side, the Brackley team is the only one with data on the performance of the hard tires, having tested them on Friday.
Red Bull’s illusion
After a convincing Friday and a flash of competitiveness seen in Q2, Red Bull falls back to the edge of being the third or fourth best team. Just like in Monza, the world champions can’t take advantage of the track’s evolution, with the increasing grip seemingly worsening their understeer problems, while providing more traction to the rear. Until the final practice session, Red Bull excelled in the middle sector, suggesting a setup with more downforce compared to their rivals, but by the afternoon, the choices became more aligned.
The extremely low grip conditions encountered in Baku, with the track being two seconds slower than expected, certainly didn’t help Red Bull, which struggled to find the extra grip to mask the limitations of the RB20. There was an expectation that the similar nature of the corners in Azerbaijan would ease the car’s balance issues, especially with the updates the team had placed some confidence in. Additionally, the car’s suspension struggled to handle the bumps in the track surface, a problem that will be even more evident in Singapore next week. The only consolation for Red Bull is that McLaren continues to fail to fully capitalize on their rivals’ difficulties.
Williams confirms
The big surprise of the day is Williams, which placed both cars in Q3, building on the strong performances already seen at Zandvoort and Monza. The updates introduced after the summer break seem to have really boosted the Grove team’s performance. However, it’s important not to confuse these results with last season’s, when Williams stood out on the straights due to a chronic lack of downforce. The current competitiveness has far more solid foundations, with a car that now excels in slow-speed corners. “We can push closer to the limit, especially in the slow corners where we’ve made a huge step forward,” said Alex Albon, one of many comments throughout the season. Williams is now putting pressure on Aston Martin, which ended up in eighth place, kept afloat by the ever-reliable Fernando Alonso, whose only consolation remains the upcoming arrival of Adrian Newey to the team.
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