Three-time world champion Max Verstappen took pole position for Saturday’s Chinese Grand Prix, 0.322 seconds ahead of Red Bull teammate Sergio Perez, with Aston Martin’s Fernando Alonso third . Verstappen capped a perfect day with a fastest lap of 1 minute 33.660 seconds after winning the sprint race at the Shanghai International Circuit. Lando Norris will join Alonso on the second row in his McLaren for Sunday’s race, which will be held in China for the first time in 2019 due to Covid-19 pandemic restrictions ’s first Grand Prix.

Oscar Piastri was fifth in the second McLaren, ahead of Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz, with George George Russell’s Mercedes was eighth.

It was a dominant day for the Dutchman, who overcame an electronic gremlin to start from fourth on the grid and claim a huge victory in the morning sprint, 13 seconds ahead of Lewis Hamilton.

The victory extended his lead over teammate Perez in the standings to 25 points.

But Hamilton’s joy at finishing second in the sprint turned to despair in the first qualifying session when the Briton locked up towards the end of the final lap, reducing his fastest pace to 18th Bit.

This is the first time since the 2022 Saudi Grand Prix that the seven-time world champion has been eliminated in the first quarter.

Sainz, the only driver other than Verstappen to win a grand prix this season, survived a huge scare in the second quarter.

The Spaniard went outside at the final corner and spun on the start-finish straight, losing his nose cone in the barriers.

That raised a red flag, but Sainz limped back to the pits for repairs and then emerged on the restart to set third fastest time and move into the penalty shootout top 10.

(This story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)