By Robert Haile
Normal service resumed for Red Bull as Max Verstappen took pole position for the Japanese Grand Prix to potentially clinch the Constructors Championship.
The Drivers Championship leader returned to the front row after a disappointing Singapore Grand Prix where he started in eleventh.
In the final qualifying session Verstappen clocked a 1:29.012 before being the only driver to dip below 1:29.000 as he secured pole position with an improved 1:28.877 with McLaren’s Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris in second and third.
Speaking afterwards Verstappen said: “It’s been a crazy weekend so far, we’ve been on another level. The car was on the rails and I could really push it to the limit.
“I fully sent it today. When the car is good it makes the track feel even more special, it really bought a big smile to my face.
“I only had three sets of new tyres so had to be careful with how I used them. Looking ahead to tomorrow, degradation will be high so we need to look after our tyres. It won’t be straightforward that’s for sure.
“The aim is to win the Constructors Championship this weekend, especially on Honda’s home turf.”
Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc took fourth with Sergio Perez’s Red Bull in fifth with Singapore winner Carlos Sainz in sixth for Ferrari.
Mercedes start seventh and eighth with Lewis Hamilton just in front of his teammate George Russell as the duo will look to beat the Ferrari’s to maintain the teams lead in the Constructors Championship.
Yuki Tsunoda took ninth to the delight of the home crowd for AlphaTauri and Aston Martin’s Fernando Alonso took tenth.
Liam Lawson over came the disappointment of not getting a full time seat with AlphaTauri to just miss out on another top ten going out in the second session in eleventh.
The Alpine team start in twelfth and fourteenth as Pierre Gasly out qualified Esteban Ocon with Williams Alex Albon separating the pair as Kevin Magnussen put his Haas in fifteenth.
For the second consecutive qualifying the first session finished early as Williams Logan Sargeant this time brought out the red flag as both Alfa Romeo’s went out with Valtteri Bottas in sixteenth and Zhou Guanyu in nineteenth.
Lance Stroll’s Aston Martin finished seventeenth with Nico Hulkenberg in eighteenth for Haas.
The Constructors Championship can be sealed this weekend if Red Bull out score Mercedes by one point or Ferrari do not out score Red Bull by twenty-three points.
So a Verstappen victory would take Ferrari out of the contest and a Perez top five would seal it for the team and a McLaren double podium could spoil it for Mercedes.
The Japanese Grand Prix race starts at 6 am GMT on Sunday, September 24.
Japanese Grand Prix Qualifying
- Max Verstappen (Red Bull)
- Oscar Piastri (McLaren)
- Lando Norris (McLaren)
- Charles Leclerc (Ferrari)
- Sergio Perez (Red Bull)
- Carlos Sainz (Ferrari)
- Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes)
- George Russell (Mercedes)
- Yuki Tsunoda (AlphaTauri)
- Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin)
- Liam Lawson (AlphaTauri)
- Pierre Gasly (Alpine)
- Alex Albon (Williams)
- Esteban Ocon (Alpine)
- Kevin Magnussen (Haas)
- Vallteri Bottas (Alfa Romeo)
- Lance Stroll (Aston Martin)
- Nico Hulkenberg (Haas)
- Zhou Guanyu (Alfa Romeo)
- Logan Sargeant (Williams)
THE HERDWICK NEWS 