Verstappen takes pole at British GP, McLaren second and third in qualifying
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Max Verstappen shrugged off an unusual low-speed crash in the pits on Saturday to qualify in pole position for the British Grand Prix.
Lando Norris nearly delighted the British Grand Prix crowd with pole position. There was just one problem: Max Verstappen.
"It's always Max. He always ruins everything for everyone," Norris joked after the Dutch driver beat his time for his fifth pole position in a row Saturday.
The British crowd roared in celebration when Norris briefly took over the top spot late in the qualifying session, before Verstappen went yet faster to take it back by .241 seconds.
The result may be routine in Formula One -- Red Bull has taken pole in nine out of 10 races -- but it followed a session of tension, another failure for Verstappen's teammate Sergio Perez, and a moment of jeopardy for the Dutch driver himself.
Verstappen made contact with the pit wall and broke his front wing while leaving his garage during a red-flag stoppage in the first part of qualifying. "I just understeered and it just didn't grip," he told the team over the radio.
Red Bull replaced the wing and checked there was no other damage before Verstappen continued, but he was at the back of a line of cars and worked his way through the field to set up for a fast lap, going side-by-side with old rival Lewis Hamilton on the way.
Perez qualified 16th, out of the top 10 for the fifth race in a row and the sixth time this season.
