Horner left shocked by Verstappen's stunning pole 'Didn't think it was possible!'

The four time world champion finished just +0.010 ahead of second placed Oscar Piastri. Although McLaren were widely expected to take the top spot, the Red Bull of Verstappen came alive in the closing stages and managed to secure pole.

Speaking to Sky Sports about the lap, Horner said: "It was all about who was going to be third and suddenly Q1, Max went quickest. You think, hang on, McLaren sandbagging here. And then Q2, we were right there again. And then, the unfortunate accident for Lando in Q3. There were only four cars with two new sets, which was the two McLarens, George and Max.

Lando Norris crashed out of Q3 after putting his McLaren in the wall in the first sector. The Brit was audibly disappointed with the result. Horner was grateful to see Red Bull's competitor jump out of the car safely.

The team principal then also explained why Verstappen's performance was extremely impressive in his eyes. "What was super impressive for me, is because you take the pit stop, you've got to carry the fuel. So he had, I don't know, six or seven kilos more fuel on that first lap, which he went quickest. Put the pressure then on the other guys, and then again his last lap was outstanding."

It puts Verstappen in the best possible place for tomorrow's Saudi Arabian Grand Prix. "To get that pole, our second in the last three races is really rewarding. And a phenomenal performance by Max and the team. And obviously good to good to have Yuki you know out there in Q3 as well."

Yuki Tsunoda finished in eight place, just behind Lewis Hamilton's Ferrari. After his incident in FP2 yesterday, the Japanese driver will be content to have finished the session unscathed.