Verstappen ahead of Norris

LIVE from 7 a.m.: Who will take pole for the Las Vegas GP?

George Russell takes the pole in Las Vegas.

(Bild: AFP/APA/Frederic J. Brown)

Mercedes driver George Russell has secured pole position for the Las Vegas Grand Prix on Sunday (from 7 a.m.). The Briton came out on top ahead of Carlos Sainz in the Ferrari and Alpine driver Pierre Gasly. Max Verstappen in the Red Bull finished fifth, one place ahead of McLaren driver Lando Norris. The final phase of qualifying was delayed by a crash involving youngster Franco Colapinto. 

Max Verstappen is going for his fourth world championship title in a row at the Formula 1 Grand Prix in Las Vegas. The Red Bull star will start the race in the gambling metropolis on Sunday night (7.00 am CET) in fifth place, directly ahead of his championship rival Lando Norris. Mercedes driver George Russell secured pole position, his third of the season, ahead of Ferrari man Carlos Sainz, Pierre Gasly in the Alpine and Charles Leclerc in the second Ferrari.

Last year's winner Verstappen goes into the third-last race of the season with a 62-point lead over Norris. If the Dutchman finishes ahead of the Englishman, he is guaranteed the world championship crown. His challenger would have to make up at least three points in the McLaren to postpone the title decision.

Interruption after Colapinto crash
Mercedes had already dominated the free practice sessions. On Thursday, record world champion Lewis Hamilton was in front twice, followed by Russell on Friday. The Silver Arrows also set the tone in all qualifying sessions. Williams driver Franco Colapinto crashed into the barriers shortly before the end of Q2. Qualifying was interrupted for more than 20 minutes because the barrier had to be repaired and the track cleaned.

Hamilton, who was still fastest in Q2, was unable to get up to speed in the finish. On his final lap, the 39-year-old lost the rear end, meaning the record holder missed out on the chance of the 105th pole position of his career, the first since Hungary in the summer of 2023, and only finished tenth. Russell is on pole for the fourth time in his career. "The last lap was really good. You have to really dive into these corners to be fast," said the Briton, who beat Sainz into second place by just under a tenth of a second.

Verstappen wants a decision on Sunday
Verstappen was almost half a second off the lead, but he kept Norris behind him in temperatures of less than ten degrees Celsius in the Nevada desert. "The race is long, we are ahead of Norris - from that point of view, everything fits now," said Red Bull's motorsport consultant Helmut Marko on ORF. "That's a position to win the world championship."

Max Verstappen (right) wants to secure the world championship title.

(Bild: AFP/APA/Getty Images via AFP/GETTY IMAGES/Mark Thompson)

However, Sergio Perez disappointed once again in 16th place. Liam Lawson from second team Racing Bulls, of all people, who could replace him as Verstappen's team-mate next year, eliminated the Mexican in 15th place in the first qualifying segment. The Bulls are also worried about race pace, especially as the harder tires on the street circuit seem to work less well on their cars.

There was also news away from the race track: Formula 1 could now have an eleventh team after all - as early as 2026. According to consistent media reports, US car manufacturer General Motors (GM) is in advanced talks with rights holder Liberty Media. The latter rejected Michael Andretti's team in January, citing a lack of competitiveness and therefore value for the series. However, Andretti has since withdrawn from the day-to-day running of his racing company and GM is likely to be prepared to take on a larger role.