Verstappen On Pole In A Potential Championship Clinching Race.
Max Verstappen took pole position for Sunday’s Qatar Grand Prix in a dominant start to the event at which he appears certain to seal a third successive world championship.
Red Bull’s Verstappen, who can clinch the drivers’ title with just three points in either Saturday’s Sprint or Sunday’s full-length contest, was comfortably clear of Mercedes duo George Russell and Lewis Hamilton in second and third, respectively.
“It feels good to be heading to Qatar with the Constructors’ Championship secured,” said Verstappen. “The track there is really fun to drive, although it’s going to be a tough weekend for all of us as it’s so hot there. The temperatures will definitely make it interesting. This weekend is also a Sprint race so we need to make sure we learn as much as we can from the practice session on Friday. The Drivers’ Championship can also be won during the Sprint race on Saturday so that is our main aim. Hopefully it will be a weekend to remember!
I’m very happy to be on pole. The tarmac was quite slippery so I was really having to build up lap after lap, but I think we were in a good window and we were improving quite nicely through each run. I think we also made the right calls after FP1 heading into qualifying. Tomorrow will be interesting, with the different session times and temperatures, but let’s see what we can do. Overall though, I think we can all be happy with the performance of the car today.”
Verstappen can win the Drivers’ World Championship in the Sprint race in Qatar, unless Checo scores six points more than Max. It would make Max the first driver to win the title on a Saturday since Nelson Piquet at the 1983 South African Grand Prix.
Max scored his fourth hat-trick victory of the 2023 season at the Japanese GP, winning from pole position and setting the fastest lap. Max’s Q3 time was 0.581s quicker than any other driver – the largest margin seen at Suzuka for 20 years – while his fastest lap was 1.064s clear of his rivals.
Oracle Red Bull Racing are currently unbeaten in the Sprint format this season, something that no team has achieved since the format was first introduced during the 2021 season. Checo won the Azerbaijan Sprint, while Max could become the first driver to win three Sprint events in a single season this weekend, having won the Austria and Belgian Sprint races.
Elsewhere on the track, McLaren’s Lando Norris appeared to be the only driver with the pace to challenge Verstappen, but he exceeded track limits on both of his Q3 flying runs to end the session without a time as they were deleted leaving him in 10th.
His team-mate Oscar Piastri was initially promoted to third by Norris’ demotion, but was then also found to have exceeded track limits on his final run and dropped to sixth.
Along with the Mercedes cars, Aston Martin’s Fernando Alonso benefitted to jump to fourth, while Charles Leclerc took fifth for Ferrari.
Leclerc’s team-mate Carlos Sainz’s strong form came to an abrupt end as the Spaniard made a surprise Q2 exit to qualify 12th, while Red Bull’s Sergio Perez’s disappointing campaign continued as he finished a place further back.
After making a fourth successive Q1 exit, Aston Martin’s Lance Stroll appeared to push away a team member as he furiously left the garage.
While Verstappen has secured pole for Sunday’s race, his first chance to claim the world championship will come in Saturday’s Sprint at 6:30pm, with the grid for the shortened race being set in the Sprint Shootout at 2pm, all live on Sky Sports F1.
Qatar GP Qualifying result
- Max Verstappen, Red Bull
- George Russell, Mercedes
- Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes
- Fernando Alonso, Aston Martin
- Charles Leclerc, Ferrari
- Oscar Piastri, McLaren
- Pierre Gasly, Alpine
- Esteban Ocon, Alpine
- Valtteri Bottas, Alfa Romeo
- Lando Norris, McLaren