The British Empire may have long faded into the annals of history, but it was George Russell, Sir Lewis Hamilton, and Lando Norris who kept the embers burning during qualifying, with three British drivers locking out the front and second rows. It was an unexpected turn of events, as many believed the McLarens would secure the first and second.

Recently introduced engineering upgrades appear to have transformed the Mercedes into a team capable of contending for race victory at Silverstone. Qualifying started under dark and stormy skies, with changeable rainy weather forcing teams to make decisions on the fly.

Verstappen went off at the high-speed Copse corner in Q2 and drifted over the gravel trap, somehow finding traction to rejoin the track. However, going over the gravel is akin to a sanding machine, and Verstappen damaged his floor, affecting his overall performance.

In Q3, the weather eased off, and the gusty British weather contributed to a drying track. As the final seconds of Q3 ticked down, Lewis Hamilton topped the timing sheets, only to be dethroned by George Russell a few seconds later. Lando Norris made a mistake on his final flying lap and had to settle for third.

Despite the floor damage, Max Verstappen had enough pace to secure 4th place. However, a Mercedes race win on Sunday is not a foregone conclusion; the Red Bull has shown better race pace all year. Nonetheless, Red Bull no longer holds the superior advantage it once had at the start of the season.

That being said, race day is where points are won and lost, and the 2024 British Grand Prix appears to be an open contest among the top four drivers.

2024 British Grand Prix: Qualifying

Q3 Times:

1 George RUSSELL Mercedes 1:25.819
2 Lewis HAMILTON Mercedes +0.171
3 Lando NORRIS McLaren +0.211
4 Max VERSTAPPEN Red Bull Racing +0.384
5 Oscar PIASTRI McLaren +0.418
6 Nico HULKENBERG Haas F1 Team +0.519
7 Carlos SAINZ Ferrari +0.690
8 Lance STROLL Aston Martin +0.766
9 Alexander ALBON Williams +0.821
10 Fernando ALONSO Aston Martin +1.098

Q2 Qualifiers:

1 Lando NORRIS McLaren 1:26.559
2 George RUSSELL Mercedes +0.164
3 Fernando ALONSO Aston Martin +0.171
4 Oscar PIASTRI McLaren +0.174
5 Lewis HAMILTON Mercedes +0.211
6 Max VERSTAPPEN Red Bull Racing +0.237
7 Carlos SAINZ Ferrari +0.284
8 Nico HULKENBERG Haas F1 Team +0.288
9 Alexander ALBON Williams +0.374
10 Lance STROLL Aston Martin +0.379

Q2 Eliminations:

11 Charles LECLERC Ferrari +0.538
12 Logan SARGEANT Williams +0.616
13 Yuki TSUNODA RB +0.710
14 Guanyu ZHOU Kick Sauber +1.308
15 Daniel RICCIARDO RB +1.390

Q1 Qualifiers:

1 Lewis HAMILTON Mercedes 1:29.547
2 George RUSSELL Mercedes +0.559
3 Charles LECLERC Ferrari +0.949
4 Carlos SAINZ Ferrari +1.010
5 Oscar PIASTRI McLaren +1.348
6 Yuki TSUNODA RB +1.447
7 Alexander ALBON Williams +1.588
8 Guanyu ZHOU Kick Sauber +1.643
9 Fernando ALONSO Aston Martin +1.717
10 Daniel RICCIARDO RB +1.744
11 Max VERSTAPPEN Red Bull Racing +1.795
12 Lance STROLL Aston Martin +1.863
13 Lando NORRIS McLaren +2.049
14 Logan SARGEANT Williams +2.061
15 Nico HULKENBERG Haas F1 Team +2.382

Q1 Eliminations:

16 Valtteri BOTTAS Kick Sauber +2.884
17 Kevin MAGNUSSEN Haas F1 Team +3.358
18 Esteban OCON Alpine +5.010
19 Sergio PEREZ Red Bull Racing +8.801
20 Pierre GASLY Alpine +10.257