Verstappen fastest in Austrian qualifying, claims 4th straight pole

Max Verstappen was fastest in Friday's qualifying session at Red Bull Ring in Spielberg, claiming his fourth consecutive pole position dating back to Monaco.

The reigning two-time champion will start Sunday's Austrian Grand Prix from the front alongside Charles Leclerc, who went second fastest. Leclerc's teammate Carlos Sainz will start in P3.

Following the result, Verstappen was summoned to the stewards for potentially impeding Haas' Kevin Magnussen in Q1. However, no punishment was handed down as the FIA ruled Magnussen "did not have to take significant evasive action."

Verstappen's teammate Sergio Perez was eliminated in a dramatic Q2 after having multiple times deleted for exceeding track limits.

"It is one of the worst tracks for track limits. … With these speeds and high-speed corners, it is so hard to judge the white line," Verstappen, who also had a lap time lost to track limits, said, according to the Associated Press. "That is why a lot of people were getting caught out. It was about surviving."

Mercedes' George Russell was another unexpected casualty of the second round of qualifying. Seven-time title-winner Lewis Hamilton qualified fifth.

In total, there were 47 track-limit violations throughout qualifying.

After a very difficult start to the year, McLaren's Lando Norris will start in the second row Sunday thanks to a very impressive fourth-place performance Friday.

Aston Martin, competing for second in the constructors' standings, will run sixth and seventh. Lance Stroll narrowly beat teammate and two-time champ Fernando Alonso.

Qualifying is one day earlier than typical race weekends as the Austrian GP will host the sprint events Saturday. Friday's qualifying still decides grid placements for Sunday's race. Saturday's sprint shootout determines starting positions for the sprint race later that day.

This is Verstappen's fourth straight pole position at Red Bull Ring dating back to the 2021 Austrian GP and including the subsequent Styrian GP in the same pandemic-altered season.