Leclerc was considerably stunned by Mercedes’ superiority, saying that the place was what he anticipated however the hole most positively was not.
On the backside of the highest 10, there was lastly some excellent news for Williams, for whom Carlos Sainz achieved the group’s first prime 10 qualifying efficiency of the 12 months with ninth on the grid.
Nonetheless, the Spaniard was later penalised for failing to gradual for yellow warning flags and was given a five-place penalty.
Williams have launched a brand new chassis this weekend which has introduced them right down to the burden restrict for the primary time this season, after being as a lot as 25kg over firstly of the 12 months.
Together with some extra developments, it seems to have produced a major step forwards, though the caveat is that Baku is a observe that fits the traits of the Williams automotive and doesn’t expose its weaknesses.
Crew-mate Alex Albon didn’t handle to safe a tow within the second a part of qualifying, and was “anyway scuffling with straight-line pace all session”, and was thirteenth, just below 0.4secs behind the Spaniard. Sainz’s penalty will promote him a spot on the grid.
Antonelli’s error got here on his second lap of the primary session.
He was the primary nook too early, and the left entrance wheel clouted the within wall, breaking the suspension.
He initially tried to get the automotive again to the pits however was informed by engineer Peter Bonnington to park up.
“Let me strive,” Antonelli pleaded, earlier than Bonnington informed him that both the observe rod or upright was damaged and there was no approach Mercedes might repair that within the time they needed to flip the automotive round earlier than the following session.
Antonelli had been on the again foot all Friday attempting to catch up time misplaced to a hydraulic drawback that had stopped his automotive on observe midway via first apply, and was not repaired till midway into the second.
It was Antonelli’s first main mistake of the season since he crashed closely in ultimate apply on the first race of the season in Australia.
