The US GP sprint race will be held on Saturday.
Max Verstappen still maintains faint hopes for the fifth F1 championship of his career. PDO
Max Verstappen took the pole position in the US GP sprint race.
The Dutchman once again humiliated McLaren About Lando Norris and Oscar Piastria. Papaijakuskis can be found in places two and three.
– This was a nice time trial. The lap times were really close to each other and it was just about how you do in the solving phase. It’s not easy because we don’t have a reference for these soft tires, said Verstappen.
– Everything went well, but I still expect a tough fight in the sprint. That’s what we all want to see.
Norris ended up in second place with a difference of 0.071 seconds. Piastri was already almost 0.4 seconds behind the Dutchman.
The surprise of the time trial was Sauber’s Nico Hulkenbergwho grabbed the top four spot before George Russell and Fernando Alonso.
– The wind was strong at times and the track was really bouncy, which is why the car could spin out of control at high speed, Verstappen admitted.
In addition to the conditions, the main role in the sprint time trial was played again by the traffic jam, because all the teams wanted to send their drivers to the track at the crucial moments.
Ferrari’s speed was completely lost. Mixed Charles Leclerc that Lewis Hamilton were only able to participate in the deciding round of the time trial in the last seconds of the second half.
In the end, Hamilton starts the sprint from the eighth and Leclerc only from the tenth grid.
Worried about his Red Bull future Yuki Tsunoda already missed the first part of the time trial. The Japanese had languished in 14th place when he was finally let out of the pits for his final drive.
However, Tsunoda got stuck in a huge F1 traffic jam and never managed a fast lap before the red flags.
He will start Saturday’s sprint from the 18th grid. You can’t gain points from there.