Qualifying report

F1 US GP: Norris beats Verstappen to pole as Russell crash curtails qualifying

Norris edged Verstappen out in Austin, with the end of qualifying disrupted by Russell's off

Lando Norris scored pole position for Formula 1’s 2024 United States Grand Prix as a George Russell crash prevented Max Verstappen and others from completing their final Q3 fliers.

The session was already a shocker for Mercedes with Lewis Hamilton having been eliminated in Q1.

Read Also:

Formula 1Lewis Hamilton in shock Q1 exit at US GP

Norris and McLaren will head the grid at Austin in a stunning turnaround from the sprint race, where Verstappen and the Ferrari drivers seemed to have a clear edge.

After the first runs in Q3, Norris lead Verstappen by 0.031s – staying ahead despite a massive snap through the penultimate corner largely thanks to a strong middle sector.

On the second attempt on new softs late in the final segment, Verstappen ran ahead of his title rival, having only just avoided a pitlane collision with Pierre Gasly exiting his Alpine garage.

But Verstappen’s attempt to topple Norris was thwarted when Russell crashed at the penultimate corner – the Mercedes heading the pack for the final tours.

Russell lost the rear of his W15 through the rapid, plunging left-hander and spun off through the gravel trap on the outside to hit the barriers hard, with the resulting double yellow flags meaning no drivers were able to complete their laps.

Verstappen and Norris had finished the first sector of their final fliers and the world champion had edged a near 0.2s advantage – albeit without getting to the sector where the McLaren had been faster on the first Q3 runs.

The order behind was preserved with Carlos Sainz third for Ferrari, ahead of his team-mate Charles Leclerc, Oscar Piastri in the other McLaren and Russell.

Gasly, who faces a post-qualifying investigation for the pitlane incident with Verstappen, took seventh ahead of Fernando Alonso and Kevin Magnussen, while Sergio Perez was only 10th after losing his first time for running too wide out of Turn 9.

In Q2, Yuki Tsunoda could not progress even with the penalty-addled Liam Lawson giving him a tow down the main straight on both his runs.

Liam Lawson, RB F1 Team VCARB 01

Photo by: Zak Mauger / Motorsport Images

Lawson, who was third-fastest in Q1, was never going to compete in the middle segment given his grid penalty for another change on the car Daniel Ricciardo had previously been racing.

The other fallers were Nico Hulkenberg in 12th after a Turn 1 lock-up and exit oversteer snap, plus Alpine’s Esteban Ocon and Lance Stroll, who could not match Alonso’s jump from the drop zone and into Q3 on their final Q2 fliers for Aston Martin.

In Q1, Hamilton was the shock faller – not gaining time as Russell, who progressed in fourth, did when Mercedes went with the rest of the frontrunners and switched from used to new softs.

Hamilton ended up being shuffled down to 19th, with his main time loss coming in an oversteer snap exiting Turn 12, and shipping 0.5s compared to Russell.

Magnussen and Stroll jumped from the drop zone with their final laps right at Q1’s end, which shuffled down Alex Albon and Franco Colapinto for Williams, while the Sauber pair also exited despite personal bests on their final tours – Valtteri Bottas taking 18th ahead of his former team-mate and Zhou Guanyu 20th.

F1 United States Grand Prix - Qualifying results

1 - 2
Cla	Driver	#	Chassis	Engine	Time	km/h
1	L. Norris McLaren	4	McLaren	Mercedes	1'32.330	214.955
2	M. Verstappen Red Bull Racing	1	Red Bull	Red Bull	+0.031 1'32.361	214.882
3	C. Sainz Ferrari	55	Ferrari	Ferrari	+0.322 1'32.652	214.208
4	C. Leclerc Ferrari	16	Ferrari	Ferrari	+0.410 1'32.740	214.004
5	O. Piastri McLaren	81	McLaren	Mercedes	+0.620 1'32.950	213.521
6	G. Russell Mercedes	63	Mercedes	Mercedes	+0.644 1'32.974	213.466
7	P. Gasly Alpine	10	Alpine	Renault	+0.688 1'33.018	213.365
8	F. Alonso Aston Martin Racing	14	Aston Martin	Mercedes	+0.979 1'33.309	212.699
9	K. Magnussen Haas F1 Team	20	Haas	Ferrari	+1.151 1'33.481	212.308
10	S. Perez Red Bull Racing	11	Red Bull	Red Bull
11	Y. Tsunoda RB	22	RB	Red Bull	+1.176 1'33.506	212.251
12	N. Hulkenberg Haas F1 Team	27	Haas	Ferrari	+1.214 1'33.544	212.165
13	E. Ocon Alpine	31	Alpine	Renault	+1.267 1'33.597	212.045
14	L. Stroll Aston Martin Racing	18	Aston Martin	Mercedes	+1.429 1'33.759	211.678
15	A. Albon Williams	23	Williams	Mercedes	+1.721 1'34.051	211.021
16	F. Colapinto Williams	43	Williams	Mercedes	+1.732 1'34.062	210.997
17	V. Bottas Sauber	77	Sauber	Ferrari	+1.822 1'34.152	210.795
18	L. Hamilton Mercedes	44	Mercedes	Mercedes	+1.824 1'34.154	210.790
19	Z. Guanyu Sauber	24	Sauber	Ferrari	+1.898 1'34.228	210.625
20	L. Lawson RB	30	RB	Red Bull
View full results