Styrian GP: Max Verstappen takes pole in qualifying, Valtteri Bottas comes second with Lewis Hamilton in third

Max Verstappen became the first driver to set a sub-64-second lap in what was an awe-inspiring performance by the Red Bull driver.

Max Verstappen's Red Bull. (Image: Twitter/Red Bull Racing Honda)
By Nilavro Ghosh | Jun 26, 2021 | 3 Min Read follow icon Follow Us

It has been a sensational period for Red Bull as they cannot seem to put a step wrong in the 2021 Formula 1 season. They secured a hattrick of pole position finishes in the last three races. It is the first time that the team has achieved such a feat in the hybrid era. With the talent that they have, it feels unnatural that they have had to wait for as long as they had to do it. Their ace driver and current driver’s championship leader Max Verstappen has been in particularly good form. He has secured two pole finishes in the last three races. It was the same story as the 23-year-old grabbed yet another pole position at the Styrian Grand Prix (GP) qualifying on Saturday.

Perhaps the most impressive part of the victory was how comfortably Verstappen had done it. If there was one thing that the Red Bull driver was missing, it was this. Over the years, his main title challenge Lewis Hamilton had won races comfortably. Verstappen, all this while, had mostly been scraping out tight victories. That all changed in the Styrian GP qualifying. He was a comfortable two-tenths of a second clear of the Brit.

HAMILTON LOSES OUT ON POLE

For Mercedes, it was another blow in what is turning out to be a rather stale title defence for Hamilton. It is not like Hamilton did not have an opportunity at grabbing first place. In fact, he had three during Q3. The Mercedes team did manage to save enough soft tyres to create openings for Hamilton. The Brit sped out at the final 12-minute session and had the entire track to himself with his first flying lap. He set the benchmark with a time of 1:04.205.

What followed from Verstappen was nothing short of absolutely brilliant. He became the first driver to set a sub-64-second lap as he posted a time of 1:03.841. And that was good enough for the Red Bull driver to grab pole position. Hamilton and the Mercedes team were left shocked as they did not expect this kind of driving from the 23-year-old.

Hamilton did manage to post a better time on his second run in which he recorded a time of 1:04.067, but that was the best that he could manage. It was rather frustrating on his final run as he made an error, and could only manage to finish in third place.

BOTTAS’ EFFORT IN VAIN

Hamilton’s teammate Valtteri Bottas had an impressive showing as he managed to finish second, but it was all for naught. Bottas will not be one of the drivers on the second row of the grid at the main race on Sunday. This is because he faces a three-place grid drop following his pitlane spin during the second practice. He will have to start from fifth place at the Styrian GP.

Hamilton and Verstappen will be the two who lead the grid at the Styrian GP. Behind them, on the second row, will be Verstappen’s partner Sergio Perez and McLaren’s Lando Norris. Bottas will have to start from the third row alongside AlphaTauri’s Pierre Gasly. Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc and Gasly’s teammate Yuki Tsunoda will start from the following row. The latter’s position, however, might be changed as he is under investigation for impeding Bottas in Q3 and is likely to face a grid drop.

Two-time champion and Alpine driver Fernando Alonso displayed a masterful performance as well as he finished in ninth place. He will start alongside Aston Martin’s Lance Stroll, who finished in 10th.

Williams driver George Russell will start from the 11th position, followed by Carlos Sainz in 12th, Daniel Ricciardo in 13th, Sebastian Vettel in 14th, and Antonio Giovinazzi in 15th. Nicholas Latifi will line up on 16th, followed by Esteban Ocon on 17th and Kimi Raikkonen on 18th. Mick Schumacher and Nikita Mazepin will be on the back row.





Related Post

HIGHLIGHTS

Buzzwords