Stand-in skipper Jitesh believes the absence of key England players will not affect his side's morale on Sunday
sports2 days ago
Formula One world champion Max Verstappen took pole position for a third straight year at the Japanese Grand Prix on Saturday, with Sergio Perez qualifying a close second to ensure a Red Bull front-row lockout.
Verstappen set the pace with a lap of one minute 28.197 seconds - 0.066 seconds clear of Perez - becoming the first driver to take pole in the opening four races of a season since Lewis Hamilton nine years ago.
But with McLaren's Lando Norris, Ferrari's Carlos Sainz and Aston Martin's Fernando Alonso in the other top five spots and all within half a second of Verstappen, Sunday's race promises to be a closer affair than the Dutchman's 2023 procession.
"It was very close in the end," said Verstappen, looking to bounce back from a mechanical issue that prevented him from finishing the race last time out in Melbourne. "Nevertheless most importantly to be on pole - of course you want every lap to be perfect but at a track like this it isn't always the case".
Norris, who finished second in Suzuka last year, will start Sunday's race third on the grid, qualifying 0.292 seconds behind Verstappen.
"We had a good car today, we could fight," said Norris. "We are trying to catch up to the Red Bulls, but they are doing a good job so hats off to them."
While Sainz, who won the last race in Australia after Verstappen's withdrawal, qualified in fourth, his team mate Charles Leclerc had a difficult drive, which will put him back in eighth for Sunday's start.
"That's the best I can do. Honestly, I don't get it," a frustrated Leclerc said over the team radio towards the end of qualifying.
Aston Martin's Alonso and McLaren's Oscar Piastri, celebrating his 23rd birthday, finished in fifth and sixth respectively.
Seven-times world champion Hamilton and George Russell, both of Mercedes, finished in seventh and ninth, but Hamilton sounded optimistic that a season beset by technical problems may be turning a corner.
"It’s actually the first weekend I have not gone crazy with setup... It's been really enjoyable driving. It's just the guys are just a little bit faster," the Briton said.
Mercedes incurred a €5,000 fine in qualifying for an unsafe incident after Russell nearly collided with Piastri in the pit lane when exiting his garage.
Local hero Yuki Tsunoda got one of the biggest cheers of the day when he snuck into the final round of qualifying and will start 10th on Sunday.
He once again finished ahead of his more experienced team mate at RB, Daniel Ricciardo, heaping pressure on the Australian driver, whose seat is at risk with the highly regarded reserve driver Liam Lawson waiting in the wings.
ALSO READ
"I’m kind of relieved that I'm able to go through to Q3 in front of Japanese fans because I felt slightly more pressure compared to the past three years," said Tsunoda. "I super enjoyed being in front of the Japanese crowd."
Alonso's Aston Martin team mate Lance Stroll struggled meanwhile and was knocked out in the first round of qualifying. He will start near the back of the grid in 16th.
Stand-in skipper Jitesh believes the absence of key England players will not affect his side's morale on Sunday
sports2 days ago
Stunning win over American Tommy Paul sets up Italian Open title clash against against Alexander Zverev
sports2 days ago
Pep Guardiola's all-conquering Blues go into the final day of the season on Sunday with a two-point cushion over the Gunners thanks to an eight-game winning streak
sports2 days ago
Brazilian Fabio Lima strikes twice in Dubai club's emphatic 4-0 victory at the Hazza Bin Zayed Stadium in Al Ain
sports2 days ago
Jon Rahm, Wyndham Clark, Phil Mickelson and Tiger Woods were among the stars packing their golf bags and leaving the famed Kentucky course after a testing second round on Friday
sports2 days ago
Top players can compartmentalize their lives, shut out all other outside distractions and can just focus on their game, says renowned golf coach Peter Cowen
sports2 days ago
The maverick West Indies' wicketkeeper-batsman hit eight sixes in his 29-ball 75 to set-up a comfortable win over the pre-tournament favourites
sports3 days ago
Bengaluru needs to win the match by at least 18 runs if they score a minimum of 200 runs batting first or win in 18.1 overs if they are chasing 200
sports3 days ago