Formula 1 championship leader Max Verstappen claimed pole position for the Styrian Grand Prix with an emphatic lap during qualifying.
It marked Red Bull Racing’s first pole position at the Red Bull Ring since the venue returned to the calendar under its ownership in 2014.
Verstappen set two laps fast enough for pole position during Q3 with his first, a 1:03.841s, remaining unbeaten through the session.
Valtteri Bottas wound up second, almost two-tenths down on Verstappen, but will drop to fifth on the grid owing to his penalty for dangerous driving in the pit lane.
Lewis Hamilton will consequently start alongside his title rival on the front row of the grid.
Hamilton adopted a three-run strategy during Q3 and it was his second effort that proved to be his personal best, having run wide on his final push lap, though he was unable to threaten Verstappen’s benchmark.
Norris stars to take third
Lando Norris has been the standout driver in the midfield this year and was a genuine contender at the venue where he claimed his maiden podium at 2020’s season-opening round.
Norris qualified fourth, though will move up to third owing to Bottas’ penalty, as he set a time within a tenth of the second-placed Finn.
Red Bull’s Sergio Perez was behind his team-mate throughout the session but will be another beneficiary of Bottas’ sanction and move up to fourth.
Bottas will slot into fifth, in front of Pierre Gasly, who maintained his strong qualifying form through 2021, taking a top-six spot for the sixth time in eight attempts.
Ferrari has been relatively subdued throughout the weekend, leaving lead representative Charles Leclerc down in seventh, while Gasly’s AlphaTauri team-mate Yuki Tsunoda placed eighth.
Tsunoda is facing a post-session investigation after allegedly impeding Bottas during the early stages of Q3.
Fernando Alonso netted his third straight Q3 appearance and placed ninth, with Aston Martin’s Lance Stroll at the foot of the top 10.
Russell fractions from the top 10
George Russell captured his best grid spot in Williams colours and came agonisingly close to securing a berth in Q3.
Russell finished just 0.008s outside of the Q3 places and is set to start from 11th position.
Sebastian Vettel had set a time quick enough for 12th but it was erased for track limits and he slipped down to 14th place.
Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz and McLaren’s Daniel Ricciardo both trailed their respective team-mates, with Ricciardo in particular unconvincing, half as second down on Norris in the session.
Antonio Giovinazzi finished as the slowest of the Q2 competitors but was within a tenth of Aston Martin driver Vettel in an exceptionally competitive session.
Ocon dumped out in first session
Nicholas Latifi came just 0.033s away from making Q2 but a bigger casualty of Q1 was Alpine driver Esteban Ocon, who mustered only 17th.
Kimi Raikkonen’s prospects were hampered by a gravelly moment exiting Turn 4, condemning him to 18th, ahead only of the Haas rookies.
Mick Schumacher made a mistake through Turn 1 on his final flying lap, as he finished six-tenths down on Raikkonen, though still classified ahead of team-mate Nikita Mazepin.
Sunday’s 71-lap Styrian Grand Prix is scheduled for 15:00 local time
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