Verstappen takes first pole of the season at Sepang, 0.298s ahead of Hamilton

Max Verstappen (Red Bull) took pole position for the Bahrain Grand Prix in Malaysia on Saturday at Sepang International Circuit with a 1m35.130s lap. Formula1.com described it as his first pole of the season. Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari) was 0.298s back in second, and championship leader Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes) inherits third on the grid because of a penalty for Isack Hadjar. The race starts tomorrow (Sunday) at 3pm local time, 07:00 UTC.

Qualifying times, before the five-place penalty for Hadjar. Source: formula1.com qualifying report

Qualifying result: Verstappen led all three segments

According to the formula1.com qualifying report, Verstappen showed consistent pace through every segment from Q1 to Q3 on his way to pole, with a 1m35.130s. Hamilton took the front row with a 1m35.428s, followed by Isack Hadjar (Red Bull) on 1m35.558s, Antonelli on 1m35.631s and Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) on 1m35.666s. Lando Norris was sixth and Oscar Piastri seventh for McLaren, with George Russell eighth, Pierre Gasly ninth and Gabriel Bortoleto tenth completing the Q3 top ten.

Hamilton struggled with tyre degradation in practice but was reported to have taken second with a late lap in qualifying. He said one last setup change before qualifying hit the sweet spot. Verstappen said it was pretty incredible to get a pole from where the season started, in remarks to the press.

Grid shake-up: Hadjar drops five places

Hadjar, who qualified third, takes a five-place grid penalty linked to engine component usage and will start eighth. Al Jazeera put it as exceeding his seasonal engine allowance, while PlanetF1 described it as an engine component violation. The penalty moves Antonelli up to third and Leclerc to fourth. Hadjar said that even from eighth he is confident of moving through the field for a good result.

GPFans also reported that Franco Colapinto carries a 15-place penalty (10 for an engine change, 5 for causing the Baku collision) and Arvid Lindblad a 30-place penalty for multiple power unit changes. We found those two items in GPFans only for this report.

Other moments

Formula1.com noted that Racing Bulls failed to get Liam Lawson into Q3 despite a tow from Lindblad, and that Antonelli had a lap briefly deleted for track limits in Q2. Esteban Ocon was reported to have complained that Haas sent him out too early, affecting his final run. Mercedes brought upgrades this weekend, yet Russell, days after winning in Baku, could only qualify eighth, while Antonelli was fourth.

Sepang marks F1's return to the circuit after nine years, and this is round 16 of the season. With Verstappen on pole and Hamilton, Antonelli and Leclerc lined up behind him, the race starts at 3pm local time tomorrow.

Qualifying result: Verstappen led all three segments

Grid shake-up: Hadjar drops five places

Other moments

Sources