In an exhilarating qualifying round, Max Verstappen masterfully secured pole position for the British Grand Prix on Saturday. McLaren driver Oscar Piastri will start second on Sunday, followed by Lando Norris.
Q1: Colapinto Crashes, Hamilton Narrowly Escapes
Franco Colapinto, already under pressure at Alpine, did himself no favors: the Argentine went off the track in Q1. He managed to continue, but caused a red flag with just a few minutes remaining. This led everyone to brace themselves for a final run to save their skin. Home favorite Lewis Hamilton nearly missed out, as Ferrari reported he didn’t have enough fuel in his car. The Brit, who won at Silverstone for Mercedes last year, narrowly escaped and advanced as fourteenth. Max Verstappen continued his strong performance from the third free practice: he was the fastest in Q1.
Eliminated: Colapinto, Hülkenberg, Stroll, Bortoleto, Lawson
Q2: Tsunoda Misses Top-10 Yet Again
Alas, Yuki Tsunoda once again failed to get his Red Bull car into the top ten. The Japanese driver was eliminated in Q2 and finished twelfth. Surprisingly, Oliver Bearman secured the sixth spot in his Haas. Unfortunately for the Englishman, he already knew before the qualifying that he would receive a ten-place grid penalty, so Tsunoda will start eleventh. Hamilton and Leclerc flexed their muscles: the Ferrari duo finished first and second.
Eliminated: Sainz, Tsunoda, Hadjar, Albon, Ocon
Q3: Verstappen Takes Control: Pole!
In the first run of the decisive part of the qualifying, Oscar Piastri convincingly clocked the fastest time, just ahead of Hamilton. The big question then was whether Piastri’s time would be enough for the pole position for the race, which starts at 14:00 UTC on Sunday. The answer came in the final run: no. It was Verstappen who impressively improved the fastest time.
