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Verstappen won – his third consecutive triumph at home to match the record of nine victories in a row – from Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin) and Pierre Gasly (Alpine) after rain heavy caused a red flag following Zhou Guanyu’s hefty crash at Turn 1 required a five-lap sprint to the…

The Dutchman punched in a 1m10.567s lap, which remained untouchable in the final moments of Q3 to ensure a third consecutive pole at his local race to the delight of his fans.

Verstappen will start ahead of Lando Norris (McLaren) and George Russell (Mercedes) in Sunday’s race after the one-hour qualifying session on Friday, which is split into three segments with five cars each being knocked out in Q1 and Q2 before the top-10 shootout of Q3.

Despite starting from the third row, due to a grid penalty for a new gearbox, Verstappen worked his way to the front by lap 16 – taking the lead from team-mate Sergio Perez (Red Bull), who’d led since passing poleman Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) on the opening lap.

Despite starting from the third row, due to a grid penalty for a new gearbox, Verstappen worked his way to the front by lap 16 – taking the lead from team-mate Sergio Perez (Red Bull), who’d led since passing poleman Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) on the opening lap.

The race started behind the safety car, with McLaren’s Oscar Piastri following it into the pitlane to switch his wets for intermediate tyres. That paid off as he took the lead from Verstappen, who pitted at the end of the first racing lap.

The two Ferrari drivers ended up third and fourth with Carlos Sainz ahead, while Charles Leclerc made a small error on his final Q3 lap that proved costly in the fight for pole.

The prelude to the sole practice session featured rain, and a wet track greeted the drivers as they sought to cram their sprint weekend preparation into the hour-long running.

Verstappen made a better start than poleman Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes), who lost further spots to both McLarens. Oscar Piastri profited from hugging the inside of Turn 1, while Lando Norris drove around the outside of Hamilton at Turn 2.

Verstappen will start ahead of the McLarens of Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri after the one-hour qualifying session, which is split into three segments with five cars each being knocked out in Q1 and Q2 before the top-10 shootout of Q3.

Verstappen will start ahead of the McLarens of Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri after the one-hour qualifying session, which is split into three segments with five cars each being knocked out in Q1 and Q2 before the top-10 shootout of Q3.