Watching the brasil quali, q2 sainz and albon were first on the track and got initial lap with nobody else on the track. that seems like the ultimate advantage, why wouldn't everyone else try to do the same?
#quali advantage
hidden knoll
north fossil
It's not that simple. Getting the initial lap means you will probably face less traffic than normal, also by the fact you will not be affected by a possible yellow flag, but also means the track will not provide as much grip as the later cars doing laps will receive. It's a strategy game, early laps provides more space and more time to do it's time lap programme, late laps provide more asphault grip as it clears out by the other drivers doing their laps.
That's just one of the reasons you will see some drivers just waiting for the track to be opened, while others will wait some good minutes before doing something. Another reason can be track temperature in some cases.
Like I said it's a strategy game and the teams consider a lot of things before doing their laps on qualifying. That's why it's not as easy as "just try to go first". The only time this will really apply is when you expect rain to come during the session, so you want to do your lap as soon as possible to not be affected by a slippery track.
Hope this helps.