Max Verstappen claimed his maiden Formula 1 pole position during a thrilling qualifying session at the Hungarian Grand Prix.
The in-form youngster led the way through the opening stages of Q3 at the Hungaroring, posting a 1:14.958, and then lowered his benchmark to clock a new lap record of 1:14.572.
That final effort was ultimately crucial as Mercedes’ Valtteri Bottas closed to within 0.018s but could not demote the 21-year-old from top spot.
Verstappen has claimed seven wins in his career but had never before headed a qualifying session, and in the process he becomes the 100th different driver in Formula 1 history to take pole position.
It is the first for his Red Bull team since Mexico last year, and the first for a Honda-powered car since the 2006 Australian Grand Prix.
Reigning World Champion Lewis Hamilton was third, two-tenths down on Verstappen, while Ferrari’s challenge never seriously materialised.
Charles Leclerc suffered damage to the rear of his SF90 when he crashed through the final corner in Q1, but Ferrari was able to undertake repairs, allowing him to continue with his programme.
Leclerc edged Sebastian Vettel by 0.028s as Q3 concluded but the pair were almost half a second down on Verstappen and Bottas.
Pierre Gasly was a subdued sixth, nearly a second behind Red Bull team-mate Verstappen, as McLaren led the midfield group, with Lando Norris 0.052s up on Carlos Sainz Jr.
Romain Grosjean put the Melbourne-spec Haas into ninth on the grid, while Kimi Raikkonen brought up the rear of the Q3 runners, 0.028s down on the Frenchman.
Renault’s Nico Hulkenberg was 11th, while Toro Rosso suffered a double Q2 elimination, Alexander Albon just 0.005s clear of Germany podium finisher Daniil Kvyat.
Antonio Giovinazzi was unable to match team-mate Raikkonen and took 14th, and at the back of the Q2 runners was Kevin Magnussen, who struggled for grip in the current-spec Haas VF-19.
George Russell built on an excellent run of pace through practice by only just narrowly missing out on a spot in Q2.
Russell, whose first F1 test came with Mercedes at the venue in 2017, has led Williams’ charge in qualifying throughout the campaign, and was competitive from the outset.
Russell placed 16th, just 0.058s down on the Q2 cut-off point, meaning he finished ahead of both Racing Point drivers and Renault’s Daniel Ricciardo.
Sergio Perez and Ricciardo compromised each other as they battled through the final corner on their respective warm-up laps, as they fell at the first hurdle.
Lance Stroll was three-tenths down on Ricciardo, while Robert Kubica again brought up the rear of the pack, eight-tenths adrift of Stroll.
His best lap was 1.3s down on team-mate Kubica.
Sunday’s 70-lap Hungarian Grand Prix is scheduled for 15:10 local time
Discussion about this post