When qualifying started at Interlagos on Friday, there were a handful of drivers who were expected to fight for the pole position. However, no one thought that it would be Haas driver Kevin Magnussen who would take P1 for the F1 Sprint! The Dane put in the lap of his life to finish ahead of Max Verstappen and George Russell as he became F1’s 106th pole sitter.
On the other hand, it was a disastrous qualifying session for Scuderia Ferrari yet again. Carlos Sainz finished P5 and Charles Leclerc could only manage 10th. Some people in the Maranello-based team’s powertrain department, however, would still be happy with the overall result.
Haas has been using Ferrari power units throughout their time in F1. The fact that a Ferrari-powered engine is at pole position should make the outfit slightly pleased, even though their own team is struggling. Ferrari customer teams have not had it easy over the last few years, as this was their first P1 in qualifying since 2008.
The last driver to put a Ferrari-powered (not Scuderia Ferrari) car on the pole was none other than Sebastian Vettel at the 2008 Italian GP.
Can Kevin Magnussen repeat Sebastian Vettel’s heroics?
Vettel is arguably one of the greatest F1 drivers of all time. His career has been quiet over the last few years but his best years were with Red Bull when he won four back-to-back Championships. However, before that, we saw his brilliance when he was driving for Red Bull’s sister team Toro Rosso.
Vettel took his Toro Rosso to qualify for pole position at the 2008 Italian GP in Monza. In the race, he defied all expectations to win the whole race which was the beginning of something special.
Magnussen will be hoping for something very similar at the 2022 Sao Paolo GP. Haas is nowhere near the top three teams in terms of pace, but the Dane insists that he will be going for the win at the Sprint race on Saturday.
Magnussen’s teammate Mick Schumacher struggling to match him
Magnussen returned to F1 only this year after missing out on his seat in 2021. His return has been absolutely emphatic with the 30-year-old scoring most of Haas’ points so far this year. Mick Schumacher, meanwhile is struggling to match up to his new teammate.
At qualifying ahead of the 2022 Sao Paolo GP Sprint race, Schumacher crashed out in Q1 after finishing last. This was disastrous for him, especially considering the fact that his teammate managed to get pole in the same car.
The 23-year-old German will be hoping to get the best out his VF-22 on Saturday and make a few places for a better grid position for Sunday’s main race.
