Verstappen to start 1st in Imola sprint race
The first sprint race of the 2022 F1 season will feature Max Verstappen in first and championship leader Charles Leclerc completing the front row ahead of the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix at Imola.
The full results from Friday's qualifying session:
| Pos. | Driver | Team | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Max Verstappen | Red Bull | 1:27.999 |
| 2 | Charles Leclerc | Ferrari | +0.779 |
| 3 | Lando Norris | McLaren | +1.132 |
| 4 | Kevin Magnussen | Haas | +1.165 |
| 5 | Fernando Alonso | Alpine | +1.203 |
| 6 | Daniel Ricciardo | McLaren | +1.743 |
| 7 | Sergio Perez | Red Bull | +1.809 |
| 8 | Valtteri Bottas | Alfa Romeo | +2.440 |
| 9 | Sebastian Vettel | Aston Martin | +3.063 |
| 10 | Carlos Sainz | Ferrari | No time |
| 11 | George Russell | Mercedes | Q2 |
| 12 | Mick Schumacher | Haas | Q2 |
| 13 | Lewis Hamilton | Mercedes | Q2 |
| 14 | Zhou Guanyu | Alfa Romeo | Q2 |
| 15 | Lance Stroll | Aston Martin | Q2 |
| 16 | Yuki Tsunoda | AlphaTauri | Q1 |
| 17 | Pierre Gasly | AlphaTauri | Q1 |
| 18 | Nicholas Latifi | Williams | Q1 |
| 19 | Esteban Ocon | Alpine | Q1 |
| 20 | Alex Albon | Williams | Q1 |
On top of deciding the grid for Sunday's grand prix, Saturday's 21-lap sprint race will award the winner eight points, the runner-up seven points, and each subsequent finisher down to eighth place one fewer point than the driver ahead.
Rain significantly affected Friday's qualifying, with each session featuring at least one red flag. Sainz's Ferrari went off track during the second session, but he had already posted a good enough time to make it into Q3. In the final session, Bottas and Norris also caused red flags, the latter ending qualifying early and securing Verstappen's spot at the front of the grid while the rain resumed.
F1 introduced sprint races during the 2021 season but only awarded six total points for the event. The 2022 format hands out 36 points for the sprint.
Imola is the first of three sprint races in the season. Austria and Brazil will host the others.