United States GP 2025
OCTOBER 17, 2025
Spint Qualifying Report - Verstappen edges Norris for Austin sprint pole
© Red Bull
Max Verstappen secured pole position for Formula 1’s sprint race at the United States Grand Prix, narrowly beating McLaren’s Lando Norris in an intense qualifying session at Austin’s Circuit of the Americas.
The Red Bull driver set a benchmark time of 1m32.143s, just 0.071s faster than Norris after delivering a flawless lap that combined aggression through the esses with precision in the final sector. Norris had briefly topped the times before Verstappen’s decisive effort, while Oscar Piastri settled for third, 0.380s behind his team-mate after a scrappy opening sequence in SQ3.
Sauber’s Nico Hülkenberg continued his strong weekend with an excellent fourth place on 1m32.645s, validating his practice pace with the team’s upgraded package. George Russell followed in fifth for Mercedes, 0.745s off the top, and Fernando Alonso claimed sixth for Aston Martin after finding late gains on the soft tyre.
Williams delivered another solid showing as Carlos Sainz took seventh in 1m32.911s, rebounding from his curtailed FP1 due to a gearbox issue. Team-mate Alex Albon completed a productive session in ninth on 1m33.099s. Between them was Lewis Hamilton’s Ferrari in eighth; the Briton was unable to extract more from the SF-25 through the low-speed final sector. Charles Leclerc rounded out the top ten with a 1m33.104s, only five thousandths slower than Albon.
The medium-tyre SQ2 session was a close-run affair, with Norris again leading Verstappen and Piastri. Ferrari faced a tense moment as both cars flirted with elimination: Leclerc dropped into the danger zone before improving to eighth, while Hamilton narrowly advanced in tenth, just 0.006s ahead of Mercedes rookie Andrea Kimi Antonelli. The Italian lost time with a Turn 12 lock-up that ended his SQ3 hopes.
Behind them, Isack Hadjar qualified 12th for Racing Bulls, followed by Pierre Gasly, Lance Stroll, and Liam Lawson. The New Zealander was frustrated after traffic compromised his final attempt, forcing him to abandon the lap.
SQ1 produced the usual congestion as drivers queued for clear air on their final flyers. Yuki Tsunoda was the main casualty in 18th after being caught out in traffic with team-mate Lawson. Haas pair Oliver Bearman (16th) and Esteban Ocon (19th) missed the cut, the latter unable to maximise the team’s new floor package.