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Russell on pole in Las Vegas as Verstappen edges closer to F1 title
George Russell has qualified on pole position for the 2024 Las Vegas Grand Prix. Max Verstappen will start ahead of nearest rival Lando Norris and edges closer to a fourth World Championship title. Carlos Sainz will share the front row with Russell, and Pierre Gasly rounds out the top three. There is a space on the second row for Charles Leclerc.
Max Verstappen can win the 2024 World Championship during Sunday's Las Vegas Grand Prix. Lando Norris must outscore Verstappen by at least three points to keep the championship alive for another week. If Verstappen finishes ahead of Norris, he will win a fourth consecutive world title in Formula 1. With the Dutchman ahead of Norris on the grid, he has a good chance to clinch the title in Vegas.
Q3 started after a lengthy delay. Franco Colapinto's heavy crash at the end of the second qualifying session meant the barrier needed fixing before the final session could start. Lewis Hamilton made a mistake on his first lap and George Russell skimmed the wall at the exit of turn five. The Brit sat on provisional pole at the time.
Q1
Three different teams sat in the top three positions at times, foreshadowing a tight and exciting qualifying session. With five minutes remaining, Bottas and Ocon sat in the drop zone. Haas decided to wait in the garage until the final part of the session. They were joined by Lance Stroll. Aston Martin worked hard to change the ERS pack after the problem experienced towards the end of the third and final free practice session. He went out on track with three minutes left.
Sergio Perez tumbled down the order as drivers completed their final laps. He was knocked out of Q1 for the sixth time this season. He was eight-tenths behind Verstappen and behind both Visa Cash App RB drivers.
OUT - P16 Perez, P17 Alonso, P18 Albon, P19 Bottas, P20 Stroll
Q2
Ferrari had a quiet start to the second session in Las Vegas. Whereas Verstappen, Mercedes and McLaren set quick times early, Leclerc and Sainz kept their powder dry at the bottom of the timesheet. They immediately removed any doubt with strong first push laps. This pushed Gasly, Colapinto, Ocon, Lawson and Zhou into the drop zone. Drivers started to complete the final push laps in Q2 but had to stop due to Franco Colapinto's heavy crash. He climbed out of a wrecked Williams car.
OUT - P15 Lawson, P14 Colapinto, P13 Zhou, P12 Magnussen, P11 Ocon