Max Verstappen Secures Pole Position at Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix, Matching Ayrton Senna’s 1993 Record
Max Verstappen will start the Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix from pole position. The Red Bull driver outpaced his competition during the qualifying session, despite previous sessions proving challenging. Notably, it was McLaren, not Ferrari, that completed the top three in Imola. With this eighth consecutive pole, Verstappen equals Ayrton Senna’s 1993 record.
The final free practice hinted at an exciting afternoon on the undulating circuit in Imola. The drivers found themselves obstructing each other on the narrow track, which by modern F1 standards, leaves little room for error. This, coupled with the fact that every mistake is penalized, set the stage for an intriguing qualifying session.
Both high-flyers like Fernando Alonso and underdogs like Logan Sargeant veered off the track in the first part of the qualification but managed to continue without damage. Nico Hülkenberg’s swift lap was particularly striking. As time was running out in Q1, he moved up from P20 to P1. Only Verstappen and Leclerc managed to overtake him. Lewis Hamilton narrowly advanced to the next part of the session on a circuit where the tifosi will cheer much louder for him next year.
Q2 started without Magnussen, Zhou, Sargeant, Bottas, and Alonso. This was a bitter pill for the Spaniard who will have to start the race from the last row tomorrow. The battle for the pole position continued unabated. Verstappen seemed to have better control of the Red Bull this time than in previous sessions in Imola. However, the differences were minimal at the Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari. Sergio Pérez, who unexpectedly fell short in this part of the qualification, felt this. Along with Stroll, Ocon, Gasly, and Albon, he had to retire. The fact that Pérez was beaten by Tsunoda and Ricciardo from the sister team made it all the more painful.
Then the drivers prepared for the final part of the qualification. Verstappen immediately set the pace, and only Norris and Leclerc came close to his time. With three minutes left on the clock, the remaining drivers, except Ricciardo, made one last attempt. Ferrari, unlike yesterday, did not perform as well. Verstappen improved his time and drove to the pole position. McLaren, with Piastri and Norris, was very close behind, but just fell short. With this eighth consecutive pole, Verstappen equals Ayrton Senna’s 1993 record, fittingly at Imola.
