Verstappen hinders Ferrari's aspirations, stealing pole position.
Max Verstappen's domination in Formula 1 can make it seem effortless at times, but the Dutch driver faced some challenges in Imola. However, he returned to top form during qualifying.
Max Verstappen claimed the pole position for the Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix on Sunday at 15:00 (Sky and live on ntv.de), setting the fastest lap of 1:14.746 minutes in Imola and dashing Ferrari's hopes of a home win.
"Wow, that's amazing!" exclaimed Verstappen over the radio after the qualifying session: "We overcame it, what an accomplishment." Second and third places went to the McLaren drivers Oscar Piastri (Australia) and Lando Norris (UK), while Ferrari's Charles Leclerc (Monaco) and Carlos Sainz (Spain) finished fourth and fifth.
"Anyone who questions Red Bull and Max is insane," said Norris, who isn't ready to give in just yet: "We're close and happy. I'm confident we have a fast race pace."
Despite mixed impressions in practice, Verstappen was on top of his game for the qualifying session. "It was awful on Friday and even on Saturday morning - in the long run and on a fast lap. I didn't like the balance of the car," admitted the Red Bull driver: "We managed to make it right for qualifying. I'm really happy that we were able to turn it around."
Nico Hülkenberg (Haas) delivered a good performance, finishing tenth, while Verstappen's teammate Sergio Perez (Mexico/11th) and other drivers trailed behind him. This is Verstappen's 39th pole position and his eighth in a row this season. The last driver to achieve such a streak was Ayrton Senna.
"From the outside, it seems there's no challenge," Verstappen said before qualifying. "But I have to give my all every weekend to extract the maximum from it. It's never boring for me because I don't need another team or driver to challenge me - I'm constantly competing with myself."
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Source: www.ntv.de
