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Max Verstappen
Photo: Photo sports

Red Bull’s Max Verstappen secured a stunning first pole position in five months at the Qatar Grand Prix, while McLaren dealt Ferrari another blow in the battle for the Formula 1 constructors’ title by qualifying ahead of their rivals.

However, the newly crowned four-time world champion ended the session under scrutiny by the stewards after a near miss with Mercedes’ George Russell, who qualified alongside on the front row at the Lusail circuit.

Russell almost rear-ended the slower Red Bull in an incident he described on team radio as ‘super dangerous’.

McLaren’s Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri qualified third and fourth respectively after taking maximum points from the sprint, leaving the team 30 points clear.

Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc starts fifth, while teammate Carlos Sainz starts seventh.

New Zealander Liam Lawson was 17th fastest for RB and claimed on his team radio that he was struck by Aston Martin driver Lance Stroll who slowed in two corners after aborting a lap.

Lawson’s best time of 1 minute 22.411 seconds was 1.170 seconds slower than teammate Yuki Tsunoda, who will be 14th on the grid.

Liam Lawson of New Zealand at the 2024 Las Vegas Grand Prix.
Photo: PHOTO SPORTS

McLaren can clinch their first constructors’ title in 26 years on Sunday, with one round to spare, if the results go their way.

Verstappen secured his fourth world title in a row in Las Vegas last week and took pole in Qatar in the final seconds – in a time of one minute and 20.520 seconds.

It was his first since Austria at the end of June and the ninth of the year.

“That was great, the turnaround. Well done guys,” Verstappen said over the radio after crossing the line 0.055 faster than Russell, who looked set to repeat his pole in Las Vegas.

“I didn’t expect this,” the Dutchman said later, after finishing only eighth in the sprint with a lack of balance and grip.

“We’ve made some changes to the car, but I never thought the performance would change so much, so that’s promising. I hope this remains the case tomorrow in the race.

“It just felt a lot more stable over one lap and that’s exactly what we need.”

Team boss Christian Horner said Red Bull had changed “pretty much everything we could” to put the car in a better performance window.

Seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton qualified sixth for Mercedes, 0.436 seconds behind Russell’s time, Fernando Alonso eighth for Aston Martin and Verstappen’s struggling teammate Sergio Perez ninth.

Kevin Magnussen completed the top 10 on the grid for Haas, who are in a midfield battle for sixth with Renault’s Alpine and Red Bull’s RB.

McLaren drivers Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris.
Photo: AFP

Piastri had led Norris in the sprint after switching places within sight of the finish as a reward for the Australian handing victory to the Briton in Brazil to boost his drivers’ championship chances.

“Not the position we hoped for after yesterday and today, but the maximum we could do,” said Norris, who made a mistake in turn five on his first attempt in the closing stages, about his starting position for Sunday.

“The lap was pretty good. I was quite happy with it, but just not fast enough compared to the others.

“I don’t think we are as fast as the Mercedes. Red Bull has shown how much they have improved since yesterday, so plenty of opportunities for everyone.”

“It was a surprise for us to be so close to McLaren, but a surprise that Red Bull and Mercedes were so strong,” said Leclerc.

Sainz was summoned to the stewards after the session for an unsafe release from the Ferrari garage into Hamilton’s path, with the team being fined 5,000 euros.

Sprint racing

Earlier, Lawson finished 16th in the sprint race after starting 10th on the grid.

Norris ignored team orders and handed Piastri victory in the short race, as McLaren took another step towards a first Formula 1 constructors’ title in 26 years.

The team’s lead over Ferrari, where Sainz finished fourth and Leclerc fifth, increased to 30 points, with 88 still to be won from Monday morning’s race and the final round in Abu Dhabi next weekend.

McLaren will win the championship under the Lusail floodlights if they score 15 points more than Ferrari – the equivalent of another one-two.

Russell was third for Mercedes in the 19-lap race, while teammate Hamilton was sixth, Nico Hulkenberg seventh for Haas and Red Bull’s Verstappen took the final point a week after securing his fourth consecutive drivers’ title.

McLaren’s Oscar Piastri during the 2023 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.
Photo: PHOTO SPORTS

The risky swap at the checkered flag, despite the team telling Norris to hold position with Russell close behind him, was reward for Piastri who gifted Norris a sprint victory in Brazil.

The Briton was still fighting for the championship at the time, but Verstappen ended that battle last week in Las Vegas.

Just 1.3 seconds separated the top four at the finish, with Australian Piastri crossing the line just 0.136 ahead of his teammate to take his second consecutive sprint victory in Qatar.

“It was probably a little closer than I wanted, but I’ve been meaning to do it since Brazil,” Norris said of the trade.

“It’s exactly what I thought was best. It’s probably a bit vague. The team told me not to do it, but I thought I could get away with it, and we did.

“To be honest, I don’t mind. I’m not here to win sprint races, I’m here to win (Grand Prix) races and a championship, but that’s not according to plan.”

The Briton led from pole position, with Piastri passing Russell for second at the second corner on lap two, a crucial move that then put him in a position to take victory.

– Reuters