Verstappen on Pole After Qatar Qualifying Dominated by Track Limit Penalties
LUSAIL, Qatar (WHN) – Red Bull’s Max Verstappen has secured pole position for the Qatar Grand Prix. The Dutch driver locked in the top spot during Friday’s qualifying session at the Lusail International Circuit, an hour of high-speed action defined by numerous lap time deletions for track limit violations.
Verstappen’s pole-setting lap was a 1:23.778. This marks his tenth pole position of the season, continuing a dominant run for the Red Bull Racing team.
Mercedes drivers George Russell and Lewis Hamilton will start second and third, respectively. The team capitalized on penalties affecting their rivals to secure a strong starting position for Sunday’s race.
A dramatic turn of events hit the McLaren team in the final moments of qualifying. Lando Norris had his final lap, which was fast enough for second on the grid, deleted by race control. The deletion was for exceeding track limits, an official FIA bulletin confirmed.
The penalty dropped Norris from the front row to a 10th-place start. His teammate, Oscar Piastri, also lost a lap time that had initially placed him third. Piastri was ultimately classified in sixth position.
The issue of track limits proved decisive throughout all three qualifying segments. Red Bull’s Sergio Perez was a high-profile casualty in the second session. Perez failed to advance to the top-10 shootout after his quickest effort was invalidated, leaving him 13th on the starting grid.
Carlos Sainz of Ferrari also faced an early exit, qualifying in 12th position.
Aston Martin’s Fernando Alonso will start fourth. Charles Leclerc, in the remaining Ferrari, qualified fifth, just ahead of the demoted Piastri.
The Alpine duo of Pierre Gasly and Esteban Ocon both advanced to the final session, securing seventh and eighth. Valtteri Bottas delivered a strong performance for Alfa Romeo, qualifying ninth.
The session was held under the powerful floodlights of the Lusail circuit. Stewards repeatedly issued notifications regarding invalidated lap times as drivers struggled to keep their cars within the white lines at key corners.
With the grid established for the main event, teams and drivers now turn their attention to Saturday’s schedule, which features the F1 Sprint Shootout and the 100km Sprint race.
