The World Cup leader wants to hit the table at the home of his team. Max Verstappen took pole at the Red Bull Ring, second in a row for the Dutchman, and will defend his position this Sunday in the Styrian Grand Prix against Lewis Hamilton , second in the Austrian time despite being overtaken by the suspended Valtteri Bottas . New ode to motorsport in a classification of this exciting Formula 1 season.
For his part, Fernando Alonso returned to squeeze his car and will start from ninth position this Sunday. His spectacular final of Q2, a new gift that the Asturian gives us on his return to the Great Circus. Saturday was nothing positive for Carlos Sainz , who failed to make the cut in Q2 and signed a twelfth place .
It’s back-to-back poles for @Max33Verstappen 👏#StyrianGP 🇦🇹 #F1 pic.twitter.com/bTN93DEwSs
— Formula 1 (@F1) June 26, 2021
The Red Bull Ring hosted the first of two consecutive qualifications on the Austrian circuit. The eighth time lap of the season started with good omens for Alpine , a team that had once again demonstrated great pace in free practice. At the moment, the feelings were very good for a Fernando Alonso who was looking to beat his teammate, Esteban Ocon, for the third time in a row.
For his part, the omens were not so good at Ferrari , as happened last weekend at Paul Ricard. The Italian team is going through the most delicate moment so far this season, so in Maranello they were not overly confident of signing a great result from Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz in Austria . In a World Cup in which the times are being spectacular, the one for the Styrian Grand Prix promised to rise to the occasion.
Esteban Ocon, eliminated in Q1
The first session of the Red Bull Ring qualifying ended with the surprise elimination of Esteban Ocon . Despite signing a third place in Free Practice 2, the French Alpine rider failed to make the cut in Q1 and will start this Sunday from sixteenth position. Alonso overtakes his teammate for the third time in a row in a time trial , tying in the individual classification of the two Alpine riders on Saturdays.
Likewise, Nicholas Lafiti , Kimi Raikkonen and the two Haas, Mick Schumacher and Nikita Mazepin , said goodbye in Q1. For the moment, the Red Bull Ring qualifying did not disappoint and the fight for pole promised as exciting as usual in this spectacular Formula 1 World Championship.
Carlos Sainz fails to break into the top 10
Ferrari’s performance so far this weekend suggested that the Italians were going to suffer at the Red Bull Ring, something that was confirmed during qualifying. Bad news for Carlos Sainz, who failed to make the cut in Q2 and will start this Sunday from twelfth position . The Madrid driver continues to suffer from poor performance from Ferrari in the last rounds of the season.
Commendable work by Fernando Alonso in the second session of the GP of Styria. He was in a very risky position, but he signed a great last lap to get in sixth place provisionally : “It was beautiful, I had a great time, no matter the position,” the Asturian driver said on the radio to the conclusion of Q2. In addition to Carlos Sainz, George Russell , Daniel Ricciardo , Sebastian Vettel and Antonio Giovinazzi were eliminated.
Verstappen log la pole
Much uncertainty before the start of Q3. Equality was maximum in the first positions: the battle could be tremendous between Verstappen and Hamilton, but Lando Norris, Pierre Gasly or Sergio Pérez, among others, threatened to sneak into the fight for pole . For his part, the last lap of Fernando Alonso excited the Spanish public .
Finally, Max Verstappen took pole in the classification of the Grand Prix of Styria. Second in a row that the Dutchman gets, which is sweet. Lewis Hamilton will start from second position and Lando Norris in third, both overtaken by a Valtteri Bottas suspended with three positions after his incident in the pit lane . Q3 was not easy for Alonso , who will start from ninth position.
