The Dutchman won the Sprint on Saturday and led off the line on Sunday, with teammate Perez joining him at the front.
The seven-time World Champion was unable to progress past Q2 and was placed 13th on the grid for the season's first sprint, in which he finished P14.
Despite missing out on important data in FP2, Norris and Ricciardo finished fifth and sixth in the Sprint, respectively, behind the Red Bulls and Ferraris.
The grid for Sunday's race is determined by the finishing order of the sprint, which means Verstappen will start with Leclerc on the front row.
After his qualifying woes on Friday – which marked the first time neither Mercedes made Q3 since 2012 – Hamilton was left dejected, and the sprint did not help.
Throughout the race, the Dutchman loomed in Leclerc's mirrors and was in DRS range with a few laps to go, stalking the Ferrari and making his move for the lead with two laps to go.
Imola has the reputation of being one of the speediest circuits on the calendar this year with very little room for error.
The Imola circuit has a distance of 4.909 km and 19 turns and the speed trap lies between corners 16 and 17 with a total race distance is 309.049 km, covered by a total of 63 laps.
The Dane has delivered strong results with a decent car, and despite his lack of F1 fitness, he has persevered his unexpected return to the F1 grid.
Despite being second in the constructors' championship, they are 39 points behind Ferrari in the standings.