F1 Qatar GP LIVE: Max Verstappen stripped of pole position after qualifying with George Russell promoted
Verstappen was stripped of pole, with George Russell promoted, after the FIA announced the world champion had impeded his rival
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Your support makes all the difference.Mercedes driver George Russell has been promoted to pole position for the Qatar Grand Prix after Red Bull’s Max Verstappen was penalised one place for impeding his rival, the FIA has announced.
Verstappen started sixth and finished only eighth in the earlier sprint race won by Oscar Piastri as McLaren edged closer to their first constructors’ title in 26 years.
But the Dutch driver returned to form for qualifying for Sunday’s 57-lap main event by seeing off Mercedes’ George Russell by just 0.055 seconds to take both his and Red Bull’s first pole since Austria exactly five months ago.
However, at 1:06 local time, more than three hours after qualifying ended, it was confirmed that Verstappen had been penalised one place for impeding Russell as both drivers geared up for their final laps.
Lando Norris, who handed team-mate Piastri victory in the sprint race earlier on Saturday – with McLaren securing a one-two finish to move 30 points clear of Ferrari – remains third, 0.252sec back.
BREAKING: Max Verstappen stripped of pole position
Mercedes driver George Russell has been promoted to pole position for the Qatar Grand Prix after Red Bull’s Max Verstappen was penalised one place for impeding his rival, the FIA has announced.
Explaining their decision, the stewards said Max Verstappen was “driving unnecessarily slowly considering the circumstances” as he “attempted to cool his tyres” ahead of the lap in which he claimed pole.
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Max Verstappen stripped of Qatar GP pole as FIA explains verdict
Max Verstappen has been stripped of his pole position for the Qatar Grand Prix to elevate George Russell to top spot on the grid for the penultimate round of the season.
Verstappen looked to have scored his first pole in five months after he edged out Mercedes’ Russell by just 0.055 seconds at the Lusail International Circuit.
However, at 1:06 local time (10:06pm GMT), more than three hours after qualifying ended, it was confirmed that Verstappen had been penalised one place for impeding Russell as both drivers geared up for their final laps.
The sanction promoted Russell, who took a lights-to-flag victory in Las Vegas a week ago, to the front of the grid for Sunday’s 57-lap race.
Max Verstappen stripped of Qatar GP pole as FIA explains verdict
It was confirmed that Verstappen had been penalised one place for impeding George Russell as both drivers geared up for their final laps
Max Verstappen stripped of pole position
Explaining their decision, the stewards said Max Verstappen was “driving unnecessarily slowly considering the circumstances” as he “attempted to cool his tyres” ahead of the lap in which he claimed pole.
Driver Standings ahead of Qatar Grand Prix
1. Max Verstappen - 404 points (champion)
2. Lando Norris - 347 points
3. Charles Leclerc - 323 points
4. Oscar Piastri - 276 points
5. Carlos Sainz - 264 points
6. George Russell - 223 points
7. Lewis Hamilton - 211 points
8. Sergio Perez - 152 points
9. Fernando Alonso - 62 points
10. Nico Hulkenberg - 37 points
11. Yuki Tsunoda - 30 points
12. Pierre Gasly - 26 points
13. Lance Stroll - 24 points
14. Esteban Ocon - 23 points
15. Kevin Magnussen - 14 points
16. Alex Albon - 12 points
17. Daniel Ricciardo - 12 points
18. Ollie Bearman - 7 points
19. Franco Colapinto - 5 points
20. Liam Lawson - 4 points
21. Zhou Guanyu - 0 points
22. Logan Sargeant - 0 points
23. Valtteri Bottas - 0 points
Lewis Hamilton after qualifying P6....
“Indeed.
“I can’t explain why I’m half-a-second off my teammate, it’s never happened before in my career. The car felt generally fine for me. There’s not much more I can add.
“I’m hoping with the changes we made we will have a bit more pace tomorrow.”
Constructors’ Championship ahead of Qatar Grand Prix:
1. McLaren - 623 points
2. Ferrari - 593 points
3. Red Bull Racing - 556 points
4. Mercedes - 434 points
5. Aston Martin - 86 points
6. Haas - 52 points
7. Alpine - 49 points
8. RB - 46 points
9. Williams - 17 points
10. Sauber - 0 points
Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc after qualifying P5...
“I felt like I did a really good job, both laps on the limit, but it was just not enough. We have to maximise the points on a weekend which has been difficult for us. Everything to play for in the race tomorrow.”
F1 Qatar GP LIVE: Sergio Perez after qualifying P9...
“We made some good progress, which is positive. I hope that tomorrow we will have the pace in the race, we want to be scoring some good points.
“Hope we can go through the pack, the direction we went with the car was promising.”
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