F1 British GP: Max Verstappen beats Lando Norris to pole position
Max Verstappen denied Lando Norris a dream home pole position in a thrilling qualifying for the F1 British Grand Prix.
Norris sent the home crowd into raptures by taking provisional pole with his final flying lap of Q3, only for Verstappen to snatch it back by 0.241s with a last-gasp effort of his own.
It came at the end of a hectic and action-packed qualifying that was never able to truly escape the threat of rain, though it remained dry enough for slick tyres throughout.
Oscar Piastri completed a phenomenal result for McLaren by taking third with a superb lap to get within 0.372s of Verstappen as the British squad out-qualified both Ferraris and their engine supplier Mercedes.
Charles Leclerc pipped Ferrari teammate Carlos Sainz to fourth but the pair were left unhappy with each other regarding their track positioning during Q1.
George Russell out-qualified Mercedes teammate Lewis Hamilton by just 0.056s to take sixth, while Alex Albon claimed an impressive eighth in his Williams.
Fernando Alonso and Pierre Gasly completed the top-10 for Aston Martin and Alpine respectively.
It was another nightmare qualifying for Sergio Perez, who suffered his latest early exit in 16th in a shock Q1 elimination.
The Mexican has now failed to join teammate Verstappen, who he trails by 81 points in the world championship, in Q3 for the fifth straight race.
