AUSTIN, Texas — Max Verstappen stormed to pole position for the U.S. Grand Prix ahead of McLaren’s Lando Norris, with championship leader Oscar Piastri struggling to sixth.
Verstappen’s lap time of 1:32.510 at the beginning of Q3 was enough. Red Bull did not send him out in time for a final attempt, but as it turned out he did not need one. Norris finished 0.291 seconds behind at the Circuit of the Americas.
The front-row lockout will give Verstappen, who has become a wild-card outsider in the title fight of late, and Norris a chance to cut the gap to Piastri in the standings Sunday.
“It was good,” Verstappen said after qualifying. “I think in every segment the car was very strong. Just trying to put the lap together around here sometimes can be quite tricky. Also, it’s very hot, very strong winds as well. And then in that first sector, having tailwind is challenging.
“The first one [lap] in Q3 was good. Just managed to improve a little bit from Q2. Unfortunately, then I couldn’t do my final run. Was a bit messy with the out laps, but luckily … we didn’t need it. So, for us again, very strong result,” he added.
Meanwhile, Norris said: “Yesterday, I was just quite comfortable. And I don’t know if it’s just everyone else has improved a bit or the wind today hurt us a bit more, but we were both struggling quite a bit more today, just to put the laps in and to be as quick as this guy.
“So, we were pushing. And I’m so happy with P2. It could have been worse, but there was no chance we could have gone pole today.”
Max Verstappen took his seventh pole of the season. Clive Mason/Getty Images
Verstappen had already taken eight points out of the McLaren pair by winning the sprint race, in which Piastri collided with Norris following contact with Nico Hülkenberg, taking both out of the race.
Verstappen’s victory in the shortened event means he goes into Sunday’s main event 55 points behind Piastri and 33 points behind Norris.
Verstappen has finished ahead of both McLaren drivers at the past three races. He will look to replicate his start in the sprint, with a clean getaway giving him a clean run up the hill into Turn 1.
Championship leader Piastri struggled all day and finished half a second off Verstappen’s lead time.
DriverTeamTimes1. Max VerstappenRed Bull1:32.5102. Lando NorrisMcLaren1:32.8013. Charles LeclercMcLaren1:32.8074. George RussellMercedes1:32.8265. Lewis HamiltonFerrari1:32.9126. Oscar PiastriMcLaren1:33.0847. Kimi AntonelliMercedes1:33.1148. Oliver BearmanHaas1:33.1399. Carlos SainzWilliams1:33.15010. Fernando AlonsoAston Martin1:33.160
The Australian driver, whose form has wobbled since the summer break, will face a tricky race Sunday to minimize the damage, with Charles Leclerc, George Russell and Lewis Hamilton starting between him and Norris.
Andrea Kimi Antonelli was seventh for Mercedes ahead of qualifying star Oliver Bearman, who will start eighth for Haas.
Carlos Sainz, who claimed a popular third in Saturday’s sprint race, qualified ninth ahead of fellow Spaniard Fernando Alonso.
The session featured one red flag, with Isack Hadjar crashing heavily in the opening moments of Q1 — the French rookie was unhurt in the crash, but will start from the back of the pack.