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Thank you for listening to the late-breaking F1 Podcast.

Make sure to check out new episodes every Wednesday and every Sunday. Hello and a very warm welcome to the late breaking F1 podcast presented by me Ben Hawking today the first

qualifying session of the year the first of 24 it is good to have F1 back properly in a competitive session where Max Vostappan took pole position

for the first race this year alongside him on the front row, the Ferrari of Charlotte Claire.

Something of a similar pattern from last year,

which we got a little bit similar to what we had last year

up and down the grid, but also some quite substantial differences. Looking at you, Al P, and we'll get to all of that a little bit later on.

I have been left with the terrifying prospect of being all alone for today's episode. I'm afraid Harry is gallavanting across the

globe, Sam's moving house, but hey, I'm reviewing the Bahrain qualifying. I think I've won here. I'm very happy to be here

presenting what happened this afternoon and as mentioned I think we should start

out front with Max Vustappan claiming that pole position.

Again, it was good to have F1 back and actually it was good to have such a competitive session,

but we'll talk about the gap that Vistappan had over the rest of the

field in just a moment in Q3 but at least in Q1. Just one second or so separating

first to 20th place. So to see such a competitive grid, 18 cars and 2 Alpine

tractors at the back, great to see. Now there are obviously caveats to that in

that everyone at the back of that grid was going

absolutely going for it to make it out of Q1 whereas I think the likes of Red Bull and

Ferrari still had pace in their locker at that point but even so that gap was double in Q1 last year.

There was two seconds separating first down to 20

so we're in a better position already

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