Norris beats Verstappen to pole while Russell's crash shortens qualifying

Lando Norris took pole position for the 2024 United States Grand Prix in Formula 1 when an accident involving George Russell prevented Max Verstappen and Co from completing their final Q3 flights.

The session was already a shock for Mercedes as Lewis Hamilton was eliminated in the first quarter.

Norris and McLaren will lead the grid in Austin, a stunning turnaround from the sprint race where Verstappen and the Ferrari drivers appeared to have a clear advantage.

After the first runs in the third quarter, Norris was 0.031 seconds ahead of Verstappen – and despite a huge breakthrough in the penultimate corner, he remained ahead, mainly thanks to a strong middle sector.

On the second attempt with new soft tires towards the end of the final section, Verstappen overtook his title rival after narrowly avoiding a collision in the pit lane with Pierre Gasly as he exited his Alpine pit.

But Verstappen's attempt to topple Norris was thwarted when Russell crashed in the penultimate corner – the Mercedes had been at the front of the field for the last few tours.

Russell lost the rear of his W15 in the fast, swooping left-hander and spun through the gravel trap on the outside, where he crashed hard into the barriers, resulting in double yellow flags, meaning neither driver could complete their laps.

Verstappen and Norris had completed the first sector of their final flights and the world champion had opened up a lead of almost 0.2 seconds – although without reaching the sector in which the McLaren had been faster in the first Q3 runs.

The order behind remained intact as Carlos Sainz finished third for Ferrari, ahead of his teammate Charles Leclerc, Oscar Piastri in the other McLaren and Russell.

Gasly, who is under investigation after qualifying over the pitlane incident with Verstappen, finished seventh ahead of Fernando Alonso and Kevin Magnussen, while Sergio Perez was only tenth after losing his first time because he went out of a corner 9 had driven out too far.

In the second qualifying, Yuki Tsunoda was unable to progress, although Liam Lawson, who withdrew on the main straight due to his penalty in both heats, thwarted his plans.

Liam Lawson, RB F1 Team VCARB 01

Photo by: Zak Mauger / Motorsport Images

Lawson, who was third fastest in Q1, would never compete in the middle segment due to his grid penalty for making another change to the car previously driven by Daniel Ricciardo.

The other crashes were Nico Hulkenberg in 12th after a lock-up in Turn 1 and an oversteer on the exit, and Alpine's Esteban Ocon and Lance Stroll, who took Alonso's jump from the drop zone into Q3 in their final Q2 flights for Aston Martin couldn't keep up.

In the first qualifying, Hamilton was the surprise winner – he was unable to gain time like Russell, who moved up to fourth when Mercedes switched from used to new soft tires with the rest of the leading group.

Hamilton was eventually relegated to 19th, with his biggest time loss coming from an oversteer at the end of Turn 12, losing him 0.5 seconds compared to Russell.

Magnussen and Stroll jumped out of the drop zone with their final laps straight at the end of the first quarter, bringing Alex Albon and Franco Colapinto back for Williams, while the Sauber pair also dropped out despite personal bests on their final outings – Valtteri Bottas finished 18th . Place ahead of his former teammate and Zhou Guanyu 20th.

F1 United States Grand Prix – Qualifying Results