Verstappen on pole at Red Bull Ring

(MENAFN - Gulf Times) Red Bull’s Formula One championship leader Max Verstappen secured pole position for his team’s home Styrian Grand Prix yesterday, with title rival Lewis Hamilton joining him on the front row. Seven times world champion Hamilton qualified third at Austria’s Red Bull Ring but moved up because Mercedes teammate Valtteri Bottas, second fastest, has a three-place grid penalty from Friday practice. Verstappen leads Hamilton by 12 points after seven rounds, with three wins each, and today’s race promises to be another thrilling battle between the championship’s two outstanding drivers. The pole was Verstappen’s second in a row after France last weekend, and third of the season. It was also Red Bull’s first at the Spielberg circuit. ''I’m sure again tomorrow it will be very tight,” said the Dutch driver after posting a fastest lap of one minute 03.841 seconds. ''Hopefully again it will be as interesting as in France,” added Verstappen, who won at Le Castellet after overtaking Hamilton on the penultimate lap as part of a bold two-stop strategy. Hamilton said he had done all he could but his second run had not been one of his best efforts and he made mistakes on the final run. ''Nonetheless it’s still on the front row after the penalty,” said the Briton. ''We go into the race tomorrow for a fight.” McLaren’s Lando Norris will start third with Red Bull’s Sergio Perez fourth following the grid drop imposed on Bottas for dangerous driving when he spun his car across the pitlane on Friday. AlphaTauri’s Pierre Gasly qualified sixth with Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc seventh and AlphaTauri’s Japanese rookie Yuki Tsunoda in eighth. The Japanese rookie was handed a three-place grid drop, however, for impeding Bottas. That lifted Spain’s double world champion Fernando Alonso to eighth with Alpine, ahead of Aston Martin’s Lance Stroll. Britain’s George Russell, the main contender to partner Hamilton at Mercedes next season if they decide not to extend Bottas’ contract, will move up to 10th with Williams. He had earlier expressed disappointment at missing out by a mere 0.008 of a second on a first appearance in the final phase of qualifying. Red Bull are chasing their fourth successive victory after winning in Monaco, Azerbaijan and France. The team last won four in a row in 2013, before the V6 turbo hybrid era ushered in seven years of Mercedes domination from 2014. Styrian Grand Prix grid (top 10) Front row 1. Max Verstappen (NED/Red Bull) 2. Lewis Hamilton (GBR/Mercedes) 2nd row 3. Lando Norris (GBR/McLaren) 4. Sergio Perez (MEX/Red Bull) 3rd row 5. Valtteri Bottas (FIN/Mercedes) 6. Pierre Gasly (FRA/AlphaTauri) 4th row 7. Charles Leclerc (MON/Ferrari) 8. Fernando Alonso (ESP/Alpine) 5th row 9. Lance Stroll (CAN/Aston Martin) 10. George Russell (GBR/Williams) MENAFN26062021000067011011ID1102349486