In a shocking turn of events, Max Verstappen lost his pole position at the Qatar Grand Prix after being penalized for driving “unnecessarily slowly” during qualifying. The decision, handed down at 1 a.m. local time in Doha, promoted George Russell to pole position just hours after the session ended.
The stewards ruled that Verstappen impeded Russell during their final flying laps at the Lusail Circuit, resulting in a one-place grid penalty. This marked a dramatic end to a tense qualifying session, as Verstappen had initially secured pole by a mere 0.055 seconds over Russell, with Lando Norris finishing third.
For Russell, this unexpected turn of events grants him his fifth career pole and a golden opportunity to follow up on his victorious performance at the Las Vegas Grand Prix.
Before the penalty was confirmed, Russell expressed frustration over Verstappen’s tactics, claiming they disrupted his flying lap.
“I had a really scrappy out-lap with the near collision with Max,” said Russell. “I ended up going through the gravel two corners before starting my lap. That cost me the 55 milliseconds we needed for outright pole. It was a bit of a hairy moment.”
Despite the setback, Russell’s upgraded grid position now puts him in a prime spot to lead the charge in Doha.
Verstappen defended his actions, pointing out that other cars were also creating gaps ahead of their laps.
“There were two cars in front of me doing the same thing, so I had to make a gap,” said the reigning champion. “I knew everyone was on a slow lap, not a push lap. George got excited trying to pass, but that’s fine—it happens when everyone’s positioning for the best start to a lap.”
The penalty denied Red Bull their first pole position since Austria five months ago. Verstappen, who had praised his team’s efforts earlier in the day, was visibly disappointed by the late-night decision.
This dramatic reshuffle now adds an extra layer of intrigue to the Qatar Grand Prix, with Russell poised to capitalize on Verstappen’s setback and secure another memorable victory.
