Verstappen takes pole for short race in Austria; Mercedes crash

Max Verstappen has clinched pole position for the short Formula 1 Austrian GP qualifying race. The Red Bull driver set a time of 1min04s984 on his final lap.

The Ferraris were close behind. Charles Leclerc started second, 0s029 seconds behind. Carlos Sainz was third, 0s082. Sergio Perez (Red Bull) was more than four tenths behind in fourth.

Q3 was marked by accidents for the Mercedes drivers. Lewis Hamilton made a mistake and crashed into the barriers at turn 7 with just over five minutes remaining. As a result, he will start tenth.

Then it was George Russell's turn. The Mercedes driver spun and hit his rear end at the last corner with just over two minutes remaining. He will start fifth, but will be investigated for allegedly leaving the pits without permission.

The sixth fastest time was Esteban Ocon (Alpine). Kevin Magnussen and Mick Schumacher, both of Haas, and Fernando Alonso (Alpine) were next.

Verstappen was fastest at the first attempt with 1min05s092. He was ahead of the Ferraris of Leclerc and Sainz.

In Q1, the best time was Leclerc's 1min05s419, with Sainz second and Verstappen third. The qualifiers were Daniel Ricciardo (McLaren), Sebastian Vettel (Aston Martin), Lance Stroll (Aston Martin), Guanyu Zhou (Alfa Romeo), and Nicholas Latifi (Williams).

In Q2, Leclerc was again the fastest, with 1min05s287, followed by Verstappen and Hamilton. Those who were out at this stage: Pierre Gasly (AlphaTauri), Alex Albon (Williams), Valtteri Bottas (Alfa Romeo), Yuki Tsuonoda (AlphaTauri), and Lando Norris (McLaren).

The start for the short qualifying race will be at 11:30am this Saturday (July 9), and the main race at 10am on Sunday (July 10). Band will broadcast both races live.

Check out the grid: