Max Verstappen surprised fans with a pole position win for Red Bull at the Japanese Grand Prix, edging out McLaren’s Lando Norris by 0.012 seconds. Verstappen gambled on a low downforce setup, which paid off as he took the top spot with a lap time of 1:26.983.
Norris had led Q2, but Verstappen made a last-ditch effort to take the pole. Oscar Piastri rounded out the top three spots. Charles Leclerc, George Russell, and Kimi Antonelli completed the top six.
Red Bull’s Yuki Tsunoda struggled in his debut qualifying session, finishing 15th after an error. Meanwhile, Verstappen expressed his excitement about securing a pole position, calling it “insane” and rewarding.
Source: https://www.formula1.com/en/latest/article/highlights-relive-verstappens-surprise-pole-in-japanese-gp-qualifying.4sGRbsLkdtKIC4itpqunIW