Monza, Sep 6: Max Verstappen delivered a champion’s performance at Monza as he snatched pole position for the Italian Grand Prix with a sensational late lap, edging out McLaren duo Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri in one of the tightest Qualifying sessions of the season.
After a disappointing outing at the Temple of Speed last year, Red Bull arrived with renewed competitiveness, and Verstappen underlined it by setting a 1m 18.792s in the dying moments of Q3 to secure P1 by just 0.077s from Norris. Piastri, only 0.190s adrift, completed an all-too-familiar McLaren challenge to Verstappen’s dominance.
Ferrari fans had hoped for a front-row start at their home race, but Charles Leclerc could do no better than fourth, while Lewis Hamilton lined up fifth.
However, Hamilton will drop five places due to a pre-event grid penalty, leaving Ferrari in a better position to challenge on Sunday.
Mercedes adopted a different strategy compared to the rest of the field, starting Qualifying on medium tyres before switching to softs. The move paid off moderately, as George Russell and young home favourite Kimi Antonelli secured sixth and seventh on the grid.
One of the standout stories came from Gabriel Bortoleto, who continued his remarkable debut season by putting his Kick Sauber into eighth position. The Brazilian’s performance added to the team’s upward momentum under new team boss Jonathan Wheatley. (IANS)
