The brief break in the season has done wonders for Red Bull, Max Verstappen, and his RB20. After his victory in the sprint race, the three-time world champion seems to be on track for pole position in the United States Grand Prix qualifiers. However, a severe crash by George Russell in the final phase of Q3 throws a wrench in the works. As a result, Verstappen’s rival, Lando Norris, will start from pole position on Sunday. Verstappen settles for the second-fastest time, but with the knowledge that his speed is up to par.
Below is a quick overview of the qualifiers for the United States Grand Prix:
Q1: Hamilton Slips, Lawson Surprises
Max Verstappen kicks off Q1 on used softs and immediately records the fastest time (1.33,690). In his second quick run, on new softs, he improves again and once again tops the time list (1.33,046). Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc clocks the second-fastest time, surprisingly followed by Liam Lawson from Visa RB. The comeback kid from New Zealand will face a grid penalty of sixty places in the race, a gift from his predecessor Daniel Ricciardo, and will therefore start from the back.
The session at the Circuit of the Americas is – as expected – plagued by track limits and scrapped lap times. The biggest loser in Q1 is Lewis Hamilton. The seven-time world champion from Mercedes slips in the final phase of Q1 due to a sloppy mistake in turn 12. His time is also later disqualified. Hamilton complains afterwards about the changed setup of his car.
Q1 Dropouts: Alexander Albon, Franco Colapinto, Valtteri Bottas, Lewis Hamilton, Guanyu Zhou.
Q2: Verstappen Fastest Again, Gasly Advances
Max Verstappen is the first to go out again. On used softs, he immediately approaches his fastest time from Q1: 1.33,052. Shortly after, Lando Norris, his closest competitor in the world title race, is the first driver to dip under 1.330: 1.32,851.
At the end of Q2, Charles Leclerc finds himself in the danger zone, but after his second fast run, he re-establishes himself among the front runners. Verstappen once again proves to be the fastest (1.32,854 UTC), followed by Carlos Sainz and Norris. Yuki Tsunoda falls just short of Q3, despite a slipstream from Lawson. Pierre Gasly, in his Alpine, does make it through to Q3, finishing eighth. Interestingly, no times were scrapped in Q2 due to track limits.
Q2 Dropouts: Yuki Tsunoda, Nico Hülkenberg, Esteban Ocon, Lance Stroll, Liam Lawson.
Q3: Russell’s Crash Assists Norris in Securing Pole Position
Haas driver Kevin Magnussen is the first to head out for the final twelve minutes of the qualifiers. Norris is advised over the radio not to overpush and to simply trust his car. His response on the track is immediate: he is incredibly fast (1.32,330 UTC), despite a minor steering error in turn 19. Max Verstappen has to concede a fraction in his first fast run: 1.32,361 UTC. Behind both drivers, Sainz and Leclerc follow for Ferrari. Sergio Pérez loses his lap time due to track limits.
In the final phase of Q3, the remaining ten drivers go for their ultimate lap, and Verstappen gets the chance to secure his first pole position since late June in Austria. In the pitlane, there’s almost a mishap after an unsafe release from Gasly. Verstappen has to brake hard to avoid contact. Verstappen starts his fast run well, with purple in the first sector. However, a hard crash from George Russell and the ensuing yellow flag effectively ends the session, meaning pole position for Norris and P2 for Verstappen. For Norris, this is his fifth pole in the last seven races.
Top-10: Norris, Verstappen, Sainz, Leclerc, Piastri, Russell, Gasly, Alonso, Magnussen.
