2024 F1 Hungarian GP Qualifying: Top 5 conclusions

The 2024 F1 Hungarian GP Qualifying saw Lando Norris secure his second pole position of the season. The McLaren driver's first lap alone was enough to be on pole, as a late red flag induced by Yuki Tsunoda's crash meant that his second lap was disrupted.

In P2, we had Lando's teammate Oscar Piastri putting together a strong enough lap that beat Max Verstappen for P3. The session was disrupted multiple times by Red flags as Sergio Perez crashed out in Q1. This was followed by another red flag later on in Q3, this time brought out by Yuki Tsunoda.

The conditions remained a bit gloomy, as there was some rain that continued to play a role. In the end, we have the McLaren duo at the front, being chased valiantly by Max Verstappen in his Red Bull.

With the session now done and dusted, what have we learned from the F1 Hungarian GP qualifying? Let's take a look.

2024 F1 Hungarian GP Qualifying: Key takeaways

#1 McLaren should win this one

After the F1 Hungarian GP qualifying, one thing became clear: McLaren is just on a different level from the competition. Red Bull is a strong competitor and might even be on par in the long runs, but over a lap, Lando Norris had things under control.

The team and the driver have made far too many errors this season. Sunday has to be the day when they tighten up everything and bring home the win. One has to tip their hat to McLaren for the job that they have done. Now it is time to get the result on Sunday.

#2 Max Verstappen was not happy after qualifying

Red Bull brought a ton of upgrades to the F1 Hungarian GP and even visually, the car looked different. The upgrades were supposed to help Max Verstappen put on a better challenge against McLaren. As it turned out, the car was just not as good as what Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri had under them.

Still, all is not lost. Verstappen was quite fast on the long runs on Friday and we're still yet to see the first lap where the Red Bull is very impressive.

#3 Mercedes messed things up for George Russell

George raised his hand after qualifying and put it on himself but it was quite clear that the driver was short-fueled in the session and it cost him. For Mercedes, it's not often that the team makes these mistakes, but this time around, it's something it might have to learn from.

Overall, it does appear that Mercedes has slipped back a little in terms of pace, and the slow speed section of the F1 Hungarian GP race track does not truly align with the car's characteristics for now.

#4 Aston Martin might have found something

The F1 Hungarian GP qualifying probably had one surprise takeaway and it revolved around Aston Martin finding pace out of nowhere. Fernando Alonso did not have the perfect strategy during the session, and maybe that hindered him, but overall, it was quite clear that there was some sentient pace that the team might have finally unlocked.

#5 That might have been the final nail in Sergio Perez's coffin

The last qualifying sessions for Sergio Perez have seen him crash out in Q1. The F1 Hungarian GP race weekend began arguably on a positive note for the Mexican, as he put together a very impressive run on Friday.

As it turns out, part of it was lower fuel, aiding him probably because he was back to his usual level of Saturday. On Friday, as David Croft even pointed out, Christian Horner almost sounded like a father making the case for Sergio Perez as he opened up and talked about how he had a chat with him at his home.

After this crash, it seems like it's all over for Checo. It's sad, but the pressure has become too much, and the situation is untenable for Red Bull now.