Max Verstappen Poles At Abu Dhabi Grand Prix Qualifying Session

Picture source: F1

As the season winds down in Abu Dhabi tomorrow, Max Verstappen has wrapped up the year with his eighth pole position in Yas Marina, beating the McLaren pair, Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, who finished in P2 and P3, respectively. 

Norris and Piastri were unable to beat Verstappen in any of the timesheets set in their first and second runs in Q3. The Red Bull defending champion set the quickest time in 1:22.207 seconds, which was -0.088s earlier than his first run. 

In the fourth was Charles Leclerc. The Ferrari driver is not in contention for the F1 driver's title, nor is his teammate, Lewis Hamilton, who was eliminated in Q1 and will start in P16. George Russell will follow in P5, making him the only Mercedes driver to start in the top five. 

The title race is split amongst Norris, Verstappen, and Piastri. Norris leads by 12 points, clear of Verstappen, who is second in the race to the trophy. However, he will have to win or finish in P2 to guarantee his victory. Otherwise, Red Bull would defend the title for yet another season. 

McLaren won the F1 driver's championship in 2008 with Lewis Hamilton. The Briton left the team to join Mercedes, where he won six more trophies. However, ever since then, McLaren has not won the F1 driver's title. 

Abu Dhabi Qualifying Session Top 10 

1. Max Verstappen (Red Bull)......1:22.207s

2. Lando Norris (McLaren) 

3. Oscar Piastri (McLaren) 

4. Charles Leclerc (Ferrari)

5. George Russell (Mercedes)

6. Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin)

7. Gabriel Bortoleto (Kick Sauber)

8. Estaban Ocon (Haas)

9. Isack Hadjar (Racing Bull)

10. Yuki Tsunoda (Red Bull)