Pre-qualifying

Pre-qualifying is a preliminary session held before the main qualifying round to reduce the number of cars allowed to compete in a motorsport event.

In motorsport, every race has a maximum number of cars that can safely compete on the track at one time. When too many teams want to enter a race, organizers need a way to decide which cars get to participate. Pre-qualifying serves as this first elimination round, separating the field before the regular qualifying session even begins.

This system was most famously used in Formula 1 during the late 1980s and early 1990s. During this period, the sport was incredibly popular, and sometimes 39 or more teams would try to enter a Grand Prix. However, only 26 cars were allowed to start the race. Pre-qualifying helped narrow down the field by eliminating the slowest cars before the main qualifying session.

Pre-qualifying sessions typically took place on Friday mornings and lasted about one hour. Not every team had to participate—only the worst-performing teams from the previous season, brand new teams without a racing history, or teams entering additional cars were required to pre-qualify. The fastest cars from this session, usually around four, would advance to the regular qualifying rounds. The rest were sent home without ever getting a chance to qualify for the actual race.

The competition during pre-qualifying was extremely intense and often more dramatic than the main qualifying session itself. Drivers knew this was their only chance to continue in the race weekend, so they took enormous risks to set fast lap times. For smaller teams with limited budgets, failing to make it through pre-qualifying meant wasted travel expenses and no television exposure.

Formula 1 held its first pre-qualifying session at the 1977 British Grand Prix when too many entries showed up. The practice became regular from 1989 to 1992. Notable teams like Jordan Grand Prix had to go through pre-qualifying when they first joined Formula 1, though Jordan successfully advanced through this challenge.

The last pre-qualifying session in Formula 1 occurred at the 1992 Hungarian Grand Prix. After this, the system disappeared as Formula 1 became more expensive and regulated. The high costs of competing naturally reduced the number of teams trying to enter, making pre-qualifying unnecessary.

While pre-qualifying is no longer used in Formula 1, similar preliminary sessions still exist in other racing series. In modern sportscar racing, for example, pre-qualifying sometimes serves as an extra practice session, with lap times used to set the starting grid if weather or other issues cancel the regular qualifying session.