Red Bull's Max Verstappen will start Sunday's Formula One Japanese Grand Prix from pole position after edging teammate Sergio Perez in Qualifying at Suzuka on Saturday.
Red Bull Racing's Max Verstappen of the Netherlands drives his car during the practice session of Formula One Japanese Grand Prix in Suzuka, Japan, April 6, 2024. (Xinhua/Zhang Xiaoyu)
The Dutchman topped each of three segments of Qualifying, setting a best time of 1:28.197 in Q3 to take the pole by just 0.066s from Perez.
"It was quite close at the end. Overall, this track is very sensitive with the tyres. The tarmac is really aggressive and when you want to go to the limit it doesn't always work out," said Verstappen, whose pole position was his fourth in as many races so far in 2024, and underlines Red Bull's perennial status as heavy favorites for victory in Sunday's Grand Prix.
"Nevertheless, most importantly it's to be on pole. Of course, you want every lap to be perfect but around a track like this, it's not always the case.
"Overall, a very good day and a good starting position for tomorrow, and tomorrow is what counts.
"It's great as a team to be P1 and P2. Hopefully, we can keep that going for tomorrow."
Behind the two Red Bulls, Lando Norris was an impressive third for McLaren, ahead of Carlos Sainz in the first of the Ferraris.
Fernando Alonso took a solid fifth for Aston Martin, with Norris' teammate Oscar Piastri set to line up sixth.
A disappointing session for Mercedes saw Lewis Hamilton finish only seventh, with the Briton incredulous at Verstappen's advantage over the field early in Q3.
Charles Leclerc finished eighth in an underwhelming session, though the Monegasque was only just over 0.1s adrift of teammate Sainz in fourth, with George Russell ninth in the second Mercedes.
Rounding out the top ten was RB's Yuki Tsunoda, who delighted his legion of fans by making it through to the final segment of Qualifying.
Of the drivers not to make it through to Q3, Tsunoda's teammate Daniel Ricciardo missed out by just 0.055s and will start 11th, ahead of Nico Hulkenberg in the Haas.
Alfa Romeo's Valtteri Bottas finished the session 13th, ahead of Alex Albon in the Williams, and the struggling Alpine team made it through to Q2 for the first time in 2024 courtesy of Esteban Ocon, who finished 15th.
Ending the session in 16th to 19th places were Lance Stroll in the second Aston Martin, Alpine's Pierre Gasly, Kevin Magnussen in his Haas and Williams' Logan Sargeant.
Zhou Guanyu will start Sunday's race from 20th and last place, with the Chinese driver complaining over the team radio that his Alfa Romeo had been "sliding all over the place".