World champion Max Verstappen has secured pole position for his Red Bull team’s home game at the Austrian Grand Prix on Sunday (July 2, 2023, live from 3 p.m. in the ticker at sportschau.de).
The Dutchman beat Ferrari drivers Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz in qualifying in Spielberg on Friday. For Verstappen it is the 26th pole of his Formula 1 career and the sixth of the season.
In the evening, race control launched an investigation into Verstappen, who is said to have blocked Kevin Magnussen (Haas) in the first part of qualifying. However, after hearing both drivers, the stewards came to the conclusion that Magnussen “didn’t have to do any significant evasive maneuvers”.
“Not so bad,” Verstappen radioed with satisfaction. Haas driver Nico Hülkenberg qualified eighth for the sixth time this year in the top ten. This was missed for the fourth time in a row by Verstappen’s teammate Sergio Perez in 15th place. His times were canceled in each case.
Sprint race on Saturday
On Saturday, the 20 drivers will once again be chasing times in the so-called sprint shootout. The starting order for the 24-lap sprint race on Saturday afternoon (4:30 p.m.) will be determined from 12:00 p.m. The winner gets eight World Championship points, the triumph on Sunday in the Grand Prix is worth 25 points.
Verstappen must be a big favorite in this one. Since Leclerc’s victory at the 2022 Austrian Grand Prix, Red Bull has won 18 of 19 races, with 15 victories going to Verstappen alone. His lead in the World Championship over second-placed Perez is 69 points.