Max brilliant in F1 Abu Dhabi! By Peter Windsor

Peter Windsor looks back at Max Verstappen's superbly-composed pole lap for the Abu Dhabi GP. Max was not quickest in any of the three sectors but managed his tyres to perfection, enabling Red Bull-Honda to out-qualify Mercedes for the first time this season.

Lewis Hamilton was fastest in the first two sectors but his tyre performance fell away in sector three, enabling both Verstappen and Lewis's Mercedes team-mate, Valtteri Bottas, to edge ahead. And Lando Norris qualified a scintillating fourth for McLaren in this, their last race with Renault engine power. Neither Renault made the top ten due to a lack of grip - and nor did Ferrari's Sebastian Vettel.

Charles Leclerc starts P12 with a three-place penalty; and Sakhir GP winner, Sergio Perez, will race from the back of the grid after a Mercedes engine change on Friday night. Images: Red Bull, Mercedes, Ferrari, Racing Point, McLaren, Alfa Romeo, Williams and Haas F1 teams.

About the editor

Leopold

Leopold Pleijsier founded F1-Fansite.com in 2001 and has followed Formula 1 since the early 1980s. He writes about daily F1 news, race weekends, drivers and the sport’s history.

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