Lando Norris bounced back from a disappointing Sprint Race to claim pole position ahead of championship rival Max Verstappen for Sunday’s 2024 United States GP.
The McLaren driver delivered a 1:32.330 that put the pressure on the Dutchman, who looked poised to claim top spot as he was faster around the first sector on his final lap at the Circuit of the Americas.
Unfortunately for Verstappen, and the rest of the grid, nobody was able to complete their final lap after George Russell brought the session to an early end after crashing his Mercedes into the barrier at Turn 19.
It means Norris starts from pole for the fourth time in the last five races ahead of Verstappen as he looks to close the championship lead, which increased to 54 points on Saturday, with Carlos Sainz, Charles Leclerc and Oscar Piastri rounding out the top five.
Russell, the lone Mercedes to make it into Q3, starts sixth ahead of Pierre Gasly, Fernando Alonso, Kevin Magnussen and Sergio Perez.
Early exit for Hamilton
There was a huge shock in Q1 when Lewis Hamilton crossed the line down in 16th. The news seemed to stun fans in attendance as well, with a noticeable lull falling over the stands at the Circuit of the Americas.
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Both Hamilton and Russell started their final laps in the bottom five, but while the latter managed to cross the line third and move on to Q2, the former could only muster P16.
Replays showed Hamilton made a mistake in Turn 12, with his day going from bad to worse when his lap time was deleted, meaning he’ll start Sunday’s race down in P19.
It’s just the fourth time Hamilton has qualified P19 in his career after Monaco 2009, Italy 2022 and Azerbaijan 2024.
Alex Albon and Franco Colapinto also saw their days come to an early end, finishing with the 16th and 17th fastest times respectively. Valtteri Bottas will start 18th, while teammate Zhou Guanyu finished with the slowest time of the session.
Q2 proved less dramatic
There weren’t any real shocks in Q2, Fernando Alonso crossing the line in ninth and thus knocking Yuki Tsunoda out of qualifying.
Nico Hulkenberg will start P12, followed by Esteban Ocon, Lance Stroll and Liam Lawson. The New Zealander is set to start at the back of the grid due to a raft of penalties after taking on new PU components for the weekend.
