SHANGHAI – Red Bull’s Max Verstappen completed a Formula 1 double, taking pole on Saturday for the Chinese Grand Prix, just hours after winning the first F1 sprint of the season.
Teammate Sergio Perez will start alongside Verstappen on Sunday on the front row, with Aston Martin’s Fernando Alonso and McLaren’s Lando Norris on the second row. Verstappen clocked 1 minute 33.660 seconds on his fastest lap, 0.322 ahead of Perez.
Superlatives fail. The three-time F1 champion is undisputed – the best driver in the sport in the fastest car. The Dutchman has won 22 of the last 26 GPs and three of the top four this season. Only brake failure in Melbourne, Australia probably prevented him from winning all four races.
Look for more of the same on Sunday.
“If the car is only half as good as the sprint then I think we will be fine,” said Verstappen.
This season he has taken every pole position, and his start there on Sunday will be the 37th of his career – it is the 100th pole for Red Bull as a team – as he seeks his 58th victory.
“Of course, it is an incredible achievement for the whole team,” said Verstappen.
“For my part, it was a very good start to the year,” he added, discreetly. “I feel very confident about qualifying compared to last year. I already had very strong leadership.”
Qualifying was held in dry conditions, with similar weather expected on Sunday.
Verstappen leads the F1 season standings with 85 points, 15 ahead of teammate Perez and 21 ahead of Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc.
Seven-time champion Lewis Hamilton of Mercedes, who dominated the sport before Verstappen, has not won in 49 races – the last in 2021. He will start 18th on the grid after finishing second in the sprint.
The track, located about 40 kilometers (25 miles) northwest of central Shanghai, has been a mystery for teams to solve. This is the first F1 race in China in five years, eliminated from the calendar by the COVID-19 pandemic.
The biggest unknown is the running surface, which has had a thin “seal coat” applied – described as liquid asphalt. Tire supplier Pirelli said it was not fully aware of the changes. Under constant rain on Friday, Verstappen said driving in these conditions was like “driving on ice”.
Adding to the intrigue, two small grass fires broke out at the edge of the track in Friday practice. The circuit was built in a swampy area and a methane gas leak is suspected.
Shanghai-born Zhou Guanyu, the only Chinese driver in F1, was slow in qualifying and will start 16th on the grid for Sauber.
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Formula 1 AP:
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