Max Verstappen appears well on course for another victory in the Austrian Grand Prix after an imperious display on Saturday.
The Red Bull driver was pulling double duty with the Austrian Sprint taking place before qualifying for Sunday's main attraction.
In the former, there was excitement during the opening laps as the Dutchman traded places with Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri in their McLarens.
However, they could not retain the pressure on Verstappen who eventually created a wide enough gap to ensure that he came through the 23-lap race with minimal fuss.
Piastri would finish 4.616 seconds adrift in second with Norris close behind in third, whereas Mercedes driver George Russell was best of the rest in fourth.
Carlos Sainz Jr, Lewis Hamilton, Charles Leclerc and Sergio Perez would complete the points scoring, all finishing no more than 17.409 seconds behind Verstappen.
MAX VERSTAPPEN STORMS TO POLE IN SPIELBERG 🇦🇹
— Formula 1 (@F1) June 29, 2024
A mighty performance from the Dutchman who was in a league of his own in qualifying 💪#F1 #AustrianGP pic.twitter.com/OSa8FqrkGb
Same story in qualifying
Nothing changed later in the day when qualifying for Sunday's Grand Prix took place, Verstappen recording the fastest time by 0.404 seconds.
Norris initially got revenge on Piastri by securing the other spot on the front row, but the previously-third Australian had his last hot lap deleted due to breaching track limits.
As a result, he dropped down to seventh, promoting Russell and Sainz Jr into third and fourth respectively, with Hamilton in fifth.
Leclerc, Piastri and Perez were next in the standings, meaning that the top eight from the Sprint all achieved the same feat in qualifying.
Haas driver Nico Hulkenberg and Alpine's Esteban Ocon completed the top 10.
Darren Plant
