formula 1
Verstappen also races to pole position at Silverstone
Also secured first place on the grid at Silverstone: World Champion Max Verstappen. photo
© Luca Bruno/AP/dpa
He seems unbeatable. Max Verstappen also takes pole at Silverstone. Lando Norris surprisingly took second place. Sergio Pérez fails alarmingly early.
In front of well over 100,000 spectators, the 25-year-old Dutchman once again duped his rivals and finished on pole for the fifth time in a row and for the 27th time in his career.
“A pretty crazy qualifying”
“It was a pretty crazy qualifying session,” said Verstappen, who was also surprised at who finished second and third. Because there were the names of Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri from McLaren. “That’s crazy,” said Norris, who was particularly celebrated. “But always Max. He destroys everything,” joked the good-humored Briton.
This was followed by the Ferrari duo Charles Leclerc and last year’s winner Carlos Sainz as well as the British Mercedes team with George Russell and record world champion Lewis Hamilton. Verstappen’s teammate Sergio Pérez, who was second in the classification before the race this Sunday (4 p.m. CEST / Sky), on the other hand, experienced the next low blow. The Mexican failed to make it into the top ten in qualifying for the fifth straight season, dropping out in the first knockout stage in 16th place. Nico Hülkenberg was eleventh in the Haas.
Before the race on Sunday (4 p.m. CEST / Sky), Verstappen is clearly ahead of Pérez (148) with 229 points. Third is Fernando Alonso (131), who only managed ninth place in the Aston Martin. Hamilton is fourth (106).
The rain from the last free practice had largely cleared up, the track was mostly dry on the ideal line for the start of the hunt for the fast laps. And the fans didn’t have to wait long for the twenty drivers and were quickly offered a spin by superstar Hamilton. The eight-time Silverstone winner steered his Mercedes back onto the course over the gravel trap. Nobody literally wanted to lose time on the accelerating asphalt.
After two best times the day before, Verstappen took the lead again. Followed by Alonso, just eleven thousandths of a second behind. But then all of a sudden there were red flags: A good three minutes before the end of the first knockout round, Kevin Magnussen’s Haas racing car was parked in the middle of the track. The premature end of Hülkenberg’s teammates, who smiled a little tormentedly at the fans in the full stands while waiting for the tow truck.
Interrupted for ten minutes
A good ten minutes were interrupted when Verstappen came out of the Box Bull and touched the pavement on the pit wall. The front wing was broken, a new one had to be put on it. The track had dried further during the break, which also meant: Faster than before – which messed up the ranking again and gave Norris position one ahead of Leclerc, Russell, Hamilton and Verstappen.
The competition also struggled in the second round, first place kept changing until the two-time world champion got serious again and took the lead. Just like in the decisive run for pole. For a few seconds, Norris felt like a pole setter before Verstappen was back in first place.