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Full results qualifying: Verstappen far too strong for Mercedes

26 June 2021 at 15:37
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  • GPblog.com

This afternoon it was time for the qualifying session of the Styrian Grand Prix, the first race of the season to be held at the Red Bull Ring. In the preparation, Max Verstappen seemed to be the fastest man and he showed that in qualifying.

Qualifying for the Steiermark Grand Prix was run in the sunshine, despite a lot of rain being predicted for the weekend. That didn't make for a dull qualifying session though, as the differences between the teams were extremely small. For example, a number of surprising names dropped out in the first two sessions and moved on to Q2 and Q3.

There was only one man who was very comfortable in his seat. Max Verstappen is supreme so far in Austria and he clearly showed that during qualifying. In Q3, nobody came close to the time of the Dutchman, who ultimately easily takes pole position. The top three is completed by Valtteri Bottas and Lewis Hamilton respectively. The Finn only loses three places due to the penalty he received on Friday. As a result, Lando Norris and Sergio Perez start on the second row of penalties. The McLaren driver is just like Verstappen extremely fast this weekend.

Honda fast on the Red Bull Ring

Teammate Daniel Ricciardo just can't say the same, the Australian is one of the big disappointments in qualifying and doesn't get further than the 13th starting spot. It's not just the RB16 that is a fast Honda car in Austria, with AlphaTauri also doing good business with Gasly in sixth place and Tsunoda in eighth.

Red Bull Racing shouldn't be too concerned though, because things could change tomorrow. The Red Bull Ring has seen some pretty crazy races in the past and tomorrow it might rain.