In a thrilling qualifying session at the Japanese Grand Prix, Max Verstappen led a dominant Red Bull one-two, with McLaren’s Lando Norris securing the third spot on the grid.
Verstappen’s pole position seemed assured from the outset, but Sergio Perez kept him on his toes, trailing just 0.066 seconds behind the three-time champion. The Red Bull duo showcased their superiority, leaving the rest of the field trailing in their wake.
Norris emerged as the best of the rest, securing an impressive third place on the grid, 0.292 seconds adrift of Verstappen’s blistering pace. The McLaren driver expressed satisfaction with the team’s progress, noting that their hard work was paying dividends in narrowing the gap to Red Bull.
Carlos Sainz led the charge for Ferrari in fourth place, followed by the experienced Fernando Alonso of Aston Martin in fifth. While Ferrari showed improvement compared to last year, it was their least impressive qualifying performance of the season.
Meanwhile, Lewis Hamilton of Mercedes, who has struggled with the car’s performance throughout the weekend, managed to secure a seventh-place start on the grid. Despite being almost half a second off the pace, Hamilton expressed optimism about the car’s improved handling compared to previous years at the Suzuka circuit.
Notably, it was a perplexing day for Charles Leclerc, who, despite being consistently faster than his teammate Sainz, found himself trailing in eighth place. The Ferrari driver expressed bewilderment at his lack of pace, acknowledging that he had pushed to the limit but was unable to extract more speed from the car.