In the Austrian GP qualifying round, Max Verstappen defeated Lando Norris to secure his 40th Formula One pole position.
On the shortest track on the schedule in terms of lap time, Verstappen, who won the Sprint earlier on Saturday, claimed pole by four tenths from Norris. Verstappen has been in excellent form all weekend.
George Russell moved up to third place, followed by Carlos Sainz in fourth, after Oscar Piastri’s lap time at Turn Six was erased due to track constraints.
Piastri fell four positions to ninth, trailing Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton, who had a near-crash at the penultimate bend at the end of Q3.
Esteban Ocon qualified in tenth place, followed by Sergio Perez in eighth. Nico Hulkenberg, who is being investigated for two pit lane infractions, was in ninth place.
The top teams all advanced to qualifying round three, thus it was a rather simple process.
Aston Martin’s Fernando Alonso was miffed to finish in 15th place, and Daniel Ricciardo, who will start in 11th place, almost missed qualifying for the second round.
The remaining drivers eliminated in Q2 were Yuki Tsunoda, Pierre Gasly, and Kevin Magnussen.
Williams, Saubers, and Lance Stroll—who was earlier this week confirmed to remain at Aston Martin through 2025—were eliminated in the first round.
Austrian GP Qualifying Timesheet
| Driver | Team | Time |
|---|---|---|
| 1) Max Verstappen | Red Bull | 1:04.314 |
| 2) Lando Norris | McLaren | +0.404 |
| 3) George Russell | Mercedes | +0.526 |
| 4) Carlos Sainz | Ferrari | +0.537 |
| 5) Lewis Hamilton | Mercedes | +0.589 |
| 6) Charles Leclerc | Ferrari | +0.730 |
| 7) Oscar Piastri | McLaren | +0.734 |
| 8) Sergio Perez | Red Bull | +0.888 |
| 9) Nico Hulkenberg | Haas | +1.071 |
| 10) Esteban Ocon | Alpine | +1.589 |
| Knocked out in Q2 | ||
| 11) Daniel Ricciardo | RB | 1:05.289 |
| 12) Kevin Magnussen | Haas | 1:05.347 |
| 13) Pierre Gasly | Alpine | 1:05.359 |
| 14) Yuki Tsunoda | RB | 1:05.412 |
| 15) Fernando Alonso | Aston Martin | 1:05.639 |
| Knocked out in Q1 | ||
| 16) Alex Albon | Williams | 1:05.736 |
| 17) Lance Stroll | Aston Martin | 1:05.819 |
| 18) Valtteri Bottas | Sauber | 1:05.847 |
| 19) Logan Sargeant | Williams | 1:05.856 |
| 20) Zhou Guanyu | Sauber | 1:06.051 |
Other posts by Hiresh
