On the way to his World Cup crown, Max Verstappen is also the benchmark in Qatar. In qualifying for the Grand Prix on Sunday (7 p.m. CEST), the Red Bull driver secured his 30th pole position in Formula 1 ahead of McLaren driver Lando Norris and George Russell in the Mercedes.
Nico Hülkenberg put his Haas in 15th place on the grid. The Emmericher was eliminated in the second qualifying section, as were the recently in-form Ferrari driver Carlos Sainz (12th) and Verstappen’s teammate Sergio Perez (13th).
Sixth place in the sprint is enough to win the title
The Grand Prix may already be a show for the 26-year-old Verstappen, as sixth place in the sprint race on Saturday (7:30 p.m. CEST/live ticker sportschau.de) is enough for him to secure his third driver’s title early on under his own steam.
The starting order for the sprint will be determined on Saturday afternoon (3 p.m.). In the unlikely event that Verstappen is not yet mathematically through after the sprint, he can make everything clear in the Grand Prix on Sunday. The World Cup decision will only be postponed to the USA Grand Prix at the end of October if Perez (177 points behind) in the championship, second in the championship, gains at least 32 points on the Dutchman in Qatar.