Max Verstappen bounces back from his Silverstone woes to take pole for the sprint race at the Austrian Grand Prix ahead of the two Ferraris, sending the home fans wild at the Red Bull Ring… as BOTH Mercedes crash out of dramatic session
- Max Verstappen has taken pole position for Saturday’s sprint race in Austria
- He will be joined on the front row by championship rival Charles Leclerc
- Carlos Sainz will start third as he looks to back up his British GP victory
- Mercedes duo Lewis Hamilton and George Russell both crashed out in Q3
Lewis Hamilton crashed out of qualifying for the Austrian Grand Prix to loud and gleeful cheers from Max Verstappen’s travelling army of fans.
While Mercedes suffered a second disappointment of the evening when George Russell followed Hamilton into the wall, Verstappen secured pole position for Saturday’s sprint race at the undulating Red Bull Ring – a 24-lap dash along the 10-corner, 2.7-mile track.
Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz qualified second and third for Ferrari, both less than one-tenth behind.
Max Verstappen edged out Charles Leclerc to take pole position for Saturday’s sprint race
Charles Leclerc congratulated Verstappen, and will start on the front row on Saturday
Carlos Sainz (R) will start Saturday’s sprint race in third place for Ferrari
As for Hamilton, he lost control at the left-hand Turn 7 and hit the advertising hoardings front-right first, prompting a red-flag delay to Q3. ‘I’m so sorry guys,’ he said. He was driven back by the medical car, though he was not seriously hurt, and could walk freely on his arrival in the pit lane.
The impacted side of his Mercedes was sheared off. A big repair job awaits.
‘What position am I in?’ Hamilton asked before belatedly stepping out of the cockpit. The seven-time world champion was lying eighth at the time but will start the sprint from 10th at best as others went faster once the action resumed. He will be plunged further down the pack if he requires new parts.
Hamilton turned up for his light media duties afterwards, saying: ‘It was a big hit, but I am OK.
‘I am incredibly disappointed in myself. Everyone worked so hard to put this car together and I never like to bring it back damaged.
‘We were fighting for the top three. I don’t have an answer for it. I lost the back end and that was that.’
But he does not believe all is lost, saying: ‘I am encouraged to see our performance. We were not expecting to be as close as that today. That is a huge positive but I am really quite far back.
‘I don’t know what is possible from there but with the sprint race I hope I can make up for some lost time.’
The Spielberg track is jammed with the orange-clad Verstappen fans. Some 60,000 devotees have journeyed here from Holland and it is effectively a home race for him, as it is in fact for his Salzburg-based Red Bull team.
Lewis Hamilton crashed his Mercedes in the early stages of Q3 and will start 10th on Saturday
George Russell also crashed out in Q3, but will still start the sprint race in fifth place
So when Hamilton’s mishap occurred, more than half the spectators punched the air or let out a hoot of delight, not least after British fans booed their Max at Silverstone last weekend.
The accident caused an 11-minute delay. No sooner had qualifying restarted than Russell lost control at the final corner and spun into the tyre wall, the back of his car damaged. He walked briskly back to the garage, slapping the backs of team-mates on his final steps towards sanctuary.
He will start fifth, subject to gearbox penalties. ‘I am a bit worried about whether we can mend it,’ he said.
Sebastian Vettel had a day to forget as he failed to make it past Q1 on Friday afternoon
What else? Aston Martin’s five-year plan to win the world championship is hardly on course in its second season. Lawrence Stroll, their fashion-billionaire owner, has signed up all the staff he can get, but still there are no signs of improvement.
Quite the reverse. Sebastian Vettel was yesterday’s emblem of decline, finishing last in qualifying after having his none-too-hot best time deleted for exceeding track limits. ‘Man, that’s painful,’ the German wailed. Team-mate Lance Stroll, the boss’s son, was 17th out of 20.
Zhou returned after his miracle escape at Silverstone a week ago to labour to 18th for Alfa Romeo, though that lowly place may not matter too much when you have scorched upside down and feared for your mortality.
Briton Lando Norris qualified 15th after being unable even to set a time in Q2. ‘I’m scared even to hit the brakes,’ he complained to the McLaren pit wall. At least he was one place higher than Daniel Ricciardo in the other orange car
Follow Sportsmail’s live blog for qualifying updates as the Formula One campaign continues at the Austrian Grand Prix.
