Source: REUTERS/Marco Bello
[Saba Sports News] The qualifying competition for the 2024 World Formula One Championship Imola Grand Prix has concluded. Red Bull F1 Team’s Max Verstappen secured the pole position for the eighth consecutive race, tying the record set by the legendary driver Ayrton Senna da Silva. However, the protagonist of the qualifying session was not Verstappen, but Haas F1 Team’s Nico Hulkenberg. In a post-race interview, Hulkenberg confessed that he intentionally caused slipstream for Verstappen in the final laps of qualifying to help him secure the pole position. A video from the qualifying session showed Hulkenberg, who finished 10th, providing a slipstream for Verstappen on the Dutch driver’s final lap of Q3, which significantly impacted the battle for pole position. Hulkenberg completed the final run of Q3 first, with Verstappen strategically allowing the Haas driver to overtake before the penultimate corner and then following closely behind. This maneuver placed Verstappen’s car in Hulkenberg’s slipstream, reducing aerodynamic drag. Verstappen eventually overtook Hulkenberg at Turn 2. With Hulkenberg’s assistance, Verstappen improved his time to 1:14.746 on the last lap, securing the pole position. Verstappen mentioned that he and Hulkenberg are good towing partners and will continue to support each other in the future.