Enea Bastianini will start on pole for the first time in his MotoGP career at the Austrian Grand Prix after edging out Francesco Bagnaia for top spot.

Gresini Racing rider Bastianini beat Bagnaia's time by 0.024 seconds to claim his first premier class pole position.

Ducati's Jack Miller completed the front row, while Fabio Quartararo and Aleix Espargaro – the top two in the riders' standings – now face second and third-row starts respectively.

Bastianini was surprised to claim pole after leaving it late but is determined to start quickly on Sunday.

"It's been a long time without a pole position for me," he said. "I'm really happy for the team; we have prepared very well for the qualifying.

"I was fast in all the laps and made good paces; I was confident I would do a great job.

"To start in front is a surprise. It is looking good for tomorrow.

"Tomorrow, we have to be fast from the start. Usually I'm fast in the second part, so it's important to start fast. We will see tomorrow in the race."

Quartararo, who is 22 points ahead of Espargaro at the top of the riders' standings, will start from fifth on the grid after posting a time 0.231s slower than Bastianini's.

The Frenchman revealed he did not feel like he had full control of his bike, which again impacted his enjoyment of qualifying.

"In qualifying, in every corner, I don't know if I'm going to turn or if I'm going to go in the gravel, so that's the most difficult thing," he said.

"My front is moving so much, the bike is moving, and at the end I don't have 100 per cent control in the qualifying.

"On the race pace, we are always more or less good, but in qualifying I have no control. I'm just out of control, and this is a problem.

"In 2019 or even last year, I was much more consistent and better. But this year is a nightmare for us. I'm not enjoying qualifying like before."

PROVISIONAL GRID

1. Enea Bastianini (Gresini Racing) 1:28.772
2. Francesco Bagnaia (Ducati) + 0.024
3. Jack Miller (Ducati) + 0.109
4. Jorge Martin (Pramac Racing) + 0.186
5. Fabio Quartararo (Monster Energy Yamaha) + 0.231
6. Johann Zarco (Pramac Racing) + 0.274
7. Maverick Vinales (Aprilia Racing) + 0.363
8. Joan Mir (Suzuki Ecstar) + 0.483
9. Aleix Espargaro (Aprilia Racing) + 0.483
10. Fabio Di Giannantonio (Gresini Racing) + 0.564

Max Verstappen and Lando Norris have hit out at the "stupid" track limits penalties dished out at the Austrian Grand Prix last weekend, while George Russell has suggested F1 should revert to a single race director.

The sport has strict rules this season regarding exceeding the borders of the circuit, with 43 offences notched for crossing the white line during Sunday's race, won by Ferrari's Charles Leclerc.

Red Bull racer and incumbent world champion Verstappen came home second while Mercedes' Lewis Hamilton was third, but the former admitted that events felt somewhat overshadowed by the stringent enforcement.

"I think the track limits debate this weekend has been a bit of a joke," Verstappen told Sky Sports F1.

"I don't think we should have this value on one millimetre over, that's a penalty or whatever. Then just add a wall or put some gravel back. I think that's great because there is gravel, you punish yourself if you go wide.

"These kind of things, I think it just doesn't look good for the sport."

McLaren's Norris, who was hit with a five-second penalty for repeat abuse, was also frustrated by the rules, adding: "You can't see the white lines. It's just guessing and I'm obviously not good enough at guessing.

"But I got a warning from Turn 1, and it was just a complete mistake. I lost time, so when you look at it that way, I can say it's a bit stupid. This was just me making mistakes. So I don't feel like I should be punished for it."

Hamilton's Mercedes team-mate Russell meanwhile questioned whether the application of the rules was down to F1's revolving cast of race directors this season.

The sport has utilised multiple directors after Michael Masi's infamous handling of the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix at the end of last season, which ultimately helped hand Verstappen the world title at Hamilton's expense.

"We don't want to be dishing out penalties left, right and centre but there needs to be an element of consistency somewhere and I think we need to look at the root cause of the issues," Russell added.

"I do agree that we need to stick to one race director. We need to have a bit more consistency with the stewarding.

"We come to the following event and often the steward in the previous event is not there. There's no accountability, no explanations of decisions. It is tricky. Everybody's got their own interpretations."

Lewis Hamilton has condemned reports of racist abuse towards attendees at the Austrian Grand Prix, leading a host of other leading Formula One figures in affirming such behaviour has no place.

A packed crowd was in attendance at the Red Bull Ring in Spielberg, with over 300,000 fans on site over the three days, which culminated in Charles Leclerc's season-reviving victory ahead of world champion Max Verstappen.

Hamilton drove to a surprise third to round out the podium after Ferrari's Carlos Sainz suffered an engine fire, further underscoring Mercedes' improvements after a strong finish at the British Grand Prix a week prior.

But the Briton, who has been the target of frequent racist remarks and attacks throughout his career, has called out allegations that some attendees were verbally abused as a product of "ignorance".

The 37-year-old had described reports of racist and homophobic abuse as "disgusting" earlier in the race weekend and doubled down in his subsequent statements.

"It just highlights that it's still an issue all over," the seven-time world champion said.

"It comes down to education and, of course, ignorance. People should come, should feel safe, should feel included and should be able to follow whoever it is you want to follow.

"[It] shouldn't matter [about] your gender, your sexuality, the colour of your skin. It should just be everyone here to have a good time."

Verstappen – whose partner's father, former Brazilian driver Nelson Piquet, was involved in a racism storm concerning remarks about Hamilton last month – also condemned the claimed abuse.

"I read a few things, a few shocking things, so that's clearly not okay," the Dutchman added.

Meanwhile, Leclerc called for bans to be issued to those responsible, adding: "If we manage to find these people, we need to take hard action. They shouldn't be allowed to be anywhere close to our sport."

Red Bull team principal Christian Horner further added: "This is completely unacceptable, and we hope that security and the authorities deal with this swiftly as there is no place for it in racing or society."

Sergio Perez has claimed that Mercedes' George Russell was at fault for their collision on lap one of the Austrian Grand Prix, which ultimately ended the Red Bull driver's race.

Perez started the race in fifth while the Mercedes driver started in fourth, and the two came into contact with both drivers blaming the other for the smash.

They came together as both exited turn four, leading to the Mexican driver spinning off and ultimately unable to continue the race.

Russell too sustained damage to his front wing in the incident whilst also receiving a five-second penalty, and yet went on to finish fourth.

Perez was visibly frustrated with what had happened, and was quick to put the blame on the Englishman.

The Mexican told Sky Sports F1: "It is a big shame for us.

"I clearly felt, from our side, that we did everything we possibly could to avoid the incident.

"It was only lap one and it was up to George to control his car. He couldn't control it, clearly.

"We ended up making contact when I was clearly ahead."

Perez's failure to finish the race, combined with Charles Leclerc's victory, means that the Red Bull driver drops to third in the drivers' championship standings.

Meanwhile, Russell's fourth-placed finish keeps him in fifth place in the standings, one place above Mercedes teammate Lewis Hamilton.

Charles Leclerc's Austrian Grand Prix victory was a case of hard work paying off for the Ferrari driver on a day that saw his team face up to more reliability issues. 

After he finished top of the pile in qualifying and Saturday's sprint, Red Bull's Max Verstappen was the clear favourite to claim triumph once again at the Red Bull Ring.

Although Verstappen led coming out of the first corner, it quickly became apparent Ferrari had superior pace, and Sergio Perez's retirement following a collision with George Russell left the Red Bull drivers' championship leader at the mercy of a Scuderia team that nailed their strategy.

Leclerc got past Verstappen for good on lap 53 but was left facing a nervous few final laps after team-mate Carlos Sainz's engine failed five laps later as he attempted an overtake of Verstappen, and the Monegasque soon began experiencing problems of his own with his throttle.

However, Leclerc was able to manage those issues to end a seven-race winless run that stretched back to the Australian GP and reignite his championship hopes, with Verstappen's lead still 38 points.

Speaking to Sky Sports, Leclerc explained the difference between the race and a sprint where Ferrari seemed well off the pace of Verstappen.

"I did some work on my driving yesterday night," he said. "I knew where to improve, especially on that medium stint.

"On the hard [tyre] we were quick, but there was no deg. I'm very happy that the hard work of yesterday paid off today."

On the throttle problem, Leclerc added: "It was really bad, especially turn three and four was a disaster because the car was pushing a lot with the throttle being extremely inconsistent. In the end, I got to the finish line in first position, so I'm really happy."

Leclerc saw wins taken away from him by engine failures in Barcelona and Baku and conceded it is a worry to see the same problem rear its head again with Sainz's car.

"As a team, it is a concern the reliability, and today it shows even more that it is a concern," said Leclerc. "We really need to look into that to make sure that it doesn't happen again during the season."

Sainz, who was prevented from claiming a fourth podium in five races and from trimming Verstappen's advantage by denying him second, made no effort to hide his disappointment.

"There was no feedback coming from the engine that this was about to happen. Very sudden," Sainz said of his fiery retirement.

"I am a bit lost for words because this is obviously a big loss of points and result for the team today, because I think it could have been an easy one-two.

"It is more difficult to take because we were about to cut the points to the leaders of the championship, both Max and Red Bull, to do a very big result for the team and one of the cars DNF.

"It is heartbreaking, but we will need to keep pushing, turn the page, and it is still a long season ahead."

Lewis Hamilton aimed to keep "chipping away" at the Formula One leaders after continuing his strong form by securing a surprise podium finish at the Austrian Grand Prix.

The seven-time world champion took advantage of Carlos Sainz's engine failure to snatch third place at the last in Spielberg, with Mercedes team-mate George Russell following in fourth as Ferrari's Charles Leclerc posted his first victory in seven outings. 

The result made it three successive podium finishes for Hamilton as the Silver Arrows continued their recovery from a disappointing start to the 2022 season – caused largely by the porpoising issues affecting their W13 car.

It represented another strong recovery for Hamilton after the 37-year-old crashed out of qualifying on Friday, and he was delighted to see the team slowly closing the gap on F1's leaders.

"I definitely wasn't expecting that, yesterday was a difficult day, and we have had a bit of a rough weekend," Hamilton told Sky Sports.

"As a team we got third and fourth which is great points, and we move forward from here.

"Firstly, I do want to say a really big thank you to the men and women in the garage who worked so hard to rebuild the car.

"I had a brand-new car on Saturday morning, and unfortunately it is something I don't do too often.

"We made some improvements this weekend, so we just have to keep chipping away at it.

"We're slowly eating into the guys ahead, but we have to keep going."

Russell, meanwhile, was hindered by making contact with Red Bull's Sergio Perez early on before making his own impressive recovery, but he urged Mercedes not to get too carried away with their recent improvements.  

"As a team we are still further behind than we want," he said. 

"The gap is definitely closing, but each time we've brought an update it's been at a circuit that has naturally suited our car, so we don't want to get too carried away."

Hamilton is sixth in the drivers' standings after 11 races of 2022, narrowly behind Russell, though neither has claimed a race win this term. 

Max Verstappen was pleased to have minimised the damage from a difficult Austrian Grand Prix despite seeing Charles Leclerc claim victory at the Red Bull Ring.

Verstappen, who had won three of the previous four Austrian Grands Prix at the circuit and prevailed at last year's Styrian Grand Prix at Red Bull's home track, looked set to continue his dominance having claimed pole position in qualifying and eased to first place in Saturday's sprint.

Despite a clean getaway helping him stay in the lead exiting turn one, Verstappen's Red Bull lacked the pace of the Ferraris of Leclerc and Carlos Sainz as he struggled with tyre degradation.

Sergio Perez's collision with George Russell and subsequent retirement left Verstappen without a team-mate on track and at the mercy of the two Scuderia drivers, and Ferrari executed their strategy superbly to put themselves in position for a one-two.

However, Sainz's engine failed on lap 58 as he was preparing an overtake of Verstappen for second place, meaning the Dutchman was able to keep his championship lead at 38 points as he came home behind Leclerc, who managed a throttle problem in the closing laps to end a seven-race winless run.

Asked about the end result given his struggles compared to Ferrari, Verstappen replied to Sky Sports:

"It was better than expected. If you look at the whole race, we were lacking pace. There was a lot of deg and I don't really understand why it was that bad. 

"It looked like Carlos was also going to overtake me, but unfortunately he encountered engine trouble. At the end, to only lose five points over a weekend is not too bad on a bad day.

"It's been a bit more tricky than I expected it to be today, but sometimes these things can happen."

Pressed on the exact issue with the tyres, Verstappen said: "There was no grip and I could not manage my tyres like I wanted to because they were degrading a lot.

"It seemed like we had a bit of an off day and they [Ferrari] had a very strong day."

Verstappen's commanding lead at the halfway stage of the season makes him the clear favourite to retain the drivers' championship.

However, Ferrari's obvious advantage on Sunday suggested the race is far from run with 11 races still to go.

Verstappen said when asked if the battle will go the wire: "It's a bit difficult to say after today; if you look at today, it looks not that great for us, but things can turn really quickly, so it's a bit difficult to tell."

Charles Leclerc reignited his Formula One world championship ambitions with victory in the Austrian Grand Prix at the Red Bull Ring.

Throughout qualifying and Saturday's sprint, all signs pointed to defending world champion Max Verstappen continuing his run of dominance in Spielberg and extending his lead in the drivers' standings.

However, in cooler conditions on Sunday, the Ferraris of Leclerc and Carlos Sainz had a clear edge over the Red Bull of Verstappen, who had a clean getaway to stay in the lead into the first corner.

The Scuderia also made the perfect strategy calls to get themselves in position for a one-two, only for Sainz to be denied by an engine failure on lap 58.

Despite a worried Leclerc experiencing problems with his throttle, he held on to clinch a third victory of the season, although Verstappen's advantage in the standings remains 38 points.

Sainz had to go off the track at turn one to protect against a fast-starting George Russell, who was soon given a five-second time penalty for causing a collision after he made contact with Sergio Perez at turn four, with the Mexican sent into the gravel and eventually forced to retire because of the damage.

Leclerc got past Verstappen with a brilliant overtake down the inside of turn four on lap 12, and Perez's exit from the equation put Ferrari in full control of the race and in the rare position of seeing their strategy working to a tee.

Following his second stop, Leclerc got ahead of Verstappen for good on lap 53 at turn three, and Sainz appeared set to repeat the feat five laps later on turn four, only for smoke to begin billowing from the back of his car.

Sainz's fiery exit, which led to a virtual safety car under which Leclerc and Verstappen both pitted, understandably caused nerves for his team-mate.

Leclerc, who saw victories in Barcelona and Baku taken away from him by an engine failure, was soon reporting issues with the throttle, and Verstappen began to loom in his mirrors.

But his car held together to allow him to weave across the finish line in delight, with Lewis Hamilton profiting from Sainz's misfortune to take third behind Verstappen and ahead of Mercedes team-mate Russell. Esteban Ocon was fifth for Alpine.

Lewis Hamilton is "disgusted and disappointed" amid reports of racist, homophobic and abusive behaviour by spectators at the Austrian Grand Prix.

The Red Bull Ring plays host to Formula One this weekend, but the behaviour of supporters has already been repeatedly in the spotlight.

Mercedes driver Hamilton questioned the crowd after many cheered a crash involving the seven-time world champion on Friday.

The 37-year-old labelled the reaction of supporters as "mind-blowing", with many supporting home favourite Max Verstappen, who was jeered by sections of the crowd at the British Grand Prix last weekend.

The race weekend at Spielberg has also seen reports of sexist and homophobic abuse, and the F1 released a statement saying they were investigating the matters on Sunday.

Hamilton has since taken to Instagram to condemn the behaviour in Austria, where the abuse, as well as harassment, has clouded the 11th race of the season.

"Disgusted and disappointed to hear that some fans are facing racist, homophobic and generally abusive behaviour at the circuit this weekend," Hamilton posted. 

"Attending the Austrian Grand Prix or any GP should never be a source of anxiety and pain for fans and something must be done to ensure that races are safe spaces for all.

"Please, if you see this happening, report it to circuit security and to @f1, we cannot sit back and allow this to continue."

Hamilton, seeking his first victory of the 2022 campaign, will start the race in eighth, with Verstappen in pole after triumphing in the sprint on Saturday.

Formula One chiefs are investigating "unacceptable" behaviour from spectators at the Austrian Grand Prix.

The conduct of fans at the Red Bull Ring this weekend has been in the spotlight after Lewis Hamilton was cheered following a crash in qualifying on Friday.

Mercedes driver Hamilton hit out at the "mind-blowing" reaction of supporters, which are mainly made up of Max Verstappen followers at Red Bull's home race.

It comes a week after Verstappen was jeered by a section of the grandstands at the British Grand Prix, where Hamilton is a home favourite.

The race weekend at Spielberg has also seen reports of sexist and homophobic abuse, as well as other forms of harassment.

F1 addressed those allegations in a statement released ahead of the main event on Sunday.

"We have been made aware of reports that some fans have been subject to completely unacceptable comments by others at the Austrian Grand Prix," the statement read.

"We take these matters very seriously, have raised them with the promoter and event security, and will be speaking to those who reported the incidents.

"This kind of behaviour is unacceptable and will not be tolerated."

Verstappen will start Sunday's race on pole after winning Saturday's sprint, while Hamilton – still seeking his first victory of the 2022 campaign – is down in eighth.

Lewis Hamilton has criticised spectators for their "mind-blowing" decision to cheer when he crashed in Austrian Grand Prix qualifying.

The Mercedes driver lost control into Turn 7 and skid into the barriers close to the Red Bull Ring grandstands, which are largely packed with Max Verstappen fans this weekend.

Hamilton was on course to challenge Verstappen for pole prior to Friday's crash, but he instead finished in 10th before being bumped up a place after Sergio Perez was penalised.

Speaking after making up one position to finish eighth in Saturday's sprint race, which establishes the grid for Sunday's main grand prix, Hamilton hit out at those who cheered.

"I don't agree or condone any of that, no matter what," he said. "A driver could have been in hospital and you are going to cheer that?

"It is mind-blowing that people would do that, knowing how dangerous our sport is. I am grateful I wasn't in hospital and wasn't injured.

"You should never cheer someone's downfall, someone's injury or crash."

 

Hamilton escaped unhurt, with the incident coming less than a week on from Zhou Guanyu's horror crash at the British Grand Prix when he somehow avoided any serious injuries.

Red Bull's Verstappen was booed by a section of supporters at Hamilton's home race at Silverstone, but the Briton is not a fan of drivers being jeered.

"It shouldn't have happened at Silverstone, and it shouldn't have happened here," he said.

Verstappen won the sprint to claim eight points and start on pole for the Austrian Grand Prix, while Ferrari duo Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz are second and third respectively.

Charles Leclerc does not want a repeat of the tussle he experienced with team-mate Carlos Sainz in the sprint race as he targets victory in the Austrian Grand Prix on Sunday.

The Ferrari drivers saw Max Verstappen race away from them in the sprint, the championship leader benefiting from the duel between Leclerc and Sainz to take the maximum eight points.

Verstappen eventually claimed triumph by 1.6 seconds from Leclerc, who insisted the Scuderia drivers must not risk losing time and wearing down their tyres by fighting with each other again at the Red Bull Ring.

He said: "I think tomorrow is going to be a long race and tyre management will be quite a bit more important compared to today, so probably tomorrow we cannot afford to do what we did today.

"We lost a little bit of time, but again when Max had the gap he also managed his pace, so we'll never know… but I felt like we were strong towards the end – probably stronger than at the beginning. Whether it [would have been] enough I really don't know."

Verstappen now leads the drivers' championship by 38 points, with Red Bull team-mate Sergio Perez, who climbed from 13th to fifth in the sprint, his closest challenger. Leclerc is a further six points back.

The Dutchman has won five of the last seven races and has an outstanding record at his team's home circuit.

He has won three of the last four Austrian Grands Prix and also prevailed at the Red Bull Ring in last season's Styrian Grand Prix.

However, Verstappen labelled his tyres "tricky" and is not anticipating a routine success across the 71-lap feature race.

"We had good pace at the beginning and after that we were very closely matched, it was as a sprint should go, it was quite flat out," said Verstappen.

"I do expect tomorrow is going to be a very interesting battle again."

George Russell will start fourth in a Mercedes that appears to lack the straight-line speed to mount a serious challenge for victory in Spielberg.

His team-mate Lewis Hamilton will start eighth having claimed the final points place in the sprint.

The seven-time world champion has experienced an eventful weekend, crashing in qualifying on Friday and being involved in a first-lap collision with Pierre Gasly before fighting back from 11th to eventually get past Mick Schuamcher's Haas for eighth spot.

"I'm grateful I managed to survive out there today," Hamilton said. "The team did such a great job to get the car back together last night and this morning. A big thank you to them, and I'm glad I brought it back mostly in one piece.

"We are slower on the straights, so I had to wait until I was out of the DRS train to overtake the cars in front. That's why it took a few laps to get ahead of Mick. Hopefully we can race stronger tomorrow – fingers crossed!"

There are six world titles split between the two drivers starting 18th and 19th. Sebastian Vettel, who was handed a suspended €25,000 fine for walking out of Friday's drivers' briefing, finished 19th in the sprint following a collision with Alex Albon that sent Vettel's Aston Martin into the gravel.

Fernando Alonso's Alpine failed to start the sprint due to an electrical issue. Valtteri Bottas, a two-time winner of this race, is the only man behind Alonso on the grid after the Alfa Romeo driver incurred a penalty because of his latest engine change.

Max Verstappen continued his excellent record in Formula One sprint races as he cruised to victory at the Red Bull Ring to secure pole position for Sunday's Austrian Grand Prix.

The reigning champion began the sprint in first place and rarely looked likely to relinquish his lead as he added to his success at Imola earlier this season in the shortened format.

At their home grand prix, Red Bull will be hoping for a successful weekend and Verstappen's victory provides them with a dream start and eight points, extending his overall lead for the season to 38.

The race itself was delayed twice as Fernando Alonso – who was subsequently unable to start – and Zhou Guanyu – consigned to a pit-lane launch – had car trouble.

When it eventually began, with the length reduced to 23 laps, Verstappen held off the two Ferraris at the start and managed to build up a handsome lead as Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz began to tussle with each other.

The top four ultimately ended as they started, with Leclerc beating Sainz to second and George Russell finishing fourth, but undoubtedly the most impressive performance on the grid came courtesy of Sergio Perez.

The Mexican felt his nine-place punishment for exceeding track limits in qualifying was excessively harsh, but he came out with a vengeance in the sprint, taking fifth despite starting way down in 13th.

Esteban Ocon, Kevin Magnussen and Lewis Hamilton closed out the top eight as the other drivers who took points.

PROVISIONAL CLASSIFICATION

1. Max Verstappen (Red Bull)
2. Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) +1.675
3. Carlos Sainz (Ferrari) +5.644s
4. George Russell (Mercedes) +13.429s
5. Sergio Perez (Red Bull) +18.302s
6. Alexander Ocon (Alpine) +31.032s
7. Kevin Magnussen (Haas) +34.539s
8. Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes) +35.447s
9. Valtteri Bottas (Alfa Romeo) +37.557s
10. Lando Norris (McLaren) +38.580s

CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS

Drivers

1. Max Verstappen (Red Bull) 189
2. Sergio Perez (Red Bull) 151
3. Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) 145
4. Carlos Sainz (Ferrari) 133
5. George Russell (Mercedes) 116

Sergio Perez will start Saturday's sprint race at the Austrian Grand Prix in 13th after being dropped down the grid for exceeding track limits.

The Red Bull driver, who trails team-mate Max Verstappen by 34 points in the drivers' championship, provisionally qualified fourth at the Red Bull Ring.

However, the Mexican had his Q3 times and the fastest lap in Q2 that got him into the top-10 shoot-out deleted for track-limit violations.

Several drivers had lap times deleted throughout qualifying in Spielberg as they battled high winds and struggled to keep wheels on the track, especially at the final corner before the start/finish straight.

Perez must now work his way through the field in the sprint to get into the top-eight point-scoring positions and improve his place on the grid for Sunday's feature race at his team's home grand prix.

Verstappen, by contrast, will start on pole ahead of the two Ferraris and Mercedes' George Russell.

Perez said after qualifying: "Yes, it was a tricky day. Already from FP1 things didn't feel great so a bit of understanding on our side and yes, hopefully tomorrow we are able to recover.

"I wasn't able to get into the rhythm – so some understanding [needed] but obviously now it's sprint tomorrow, and a long race ahead.

"So we have got to keep our heads down and push hard for tomorrow's sprint to try to make some progress and get a good position for Sunday's race."

 

 

 

Lewis Hamilton is "incredibly disappointed" in himself after both he and Mercedes team-mate George Russell crashed out of qualifying ahead of the Austrian Grand Prix.

The precursor for Saturday's sprint race in Spielberg proved a dramatic one, with Red Bull's Max Verstappen taking pole ahead of Ferrari pair Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz.

Hamilton has yet to win a race this season after 10 rounds but looked good value to compete for pole until losing control into Turn 7, causing him to skid into the barriers.

That crash in Q3 ruined his chance of starting high up the grid on Saturday, with the seven-time world champion instead down in 10th.

Russell did not fare much better as he caused another red flag after spinning into the barriers at the final corner on a day to forget for Mercedes.

Team boss Toto Wolff told the duo they "should not beat themselves up", adding: "I'd rather have a fast car and a qualifying like this than not having the pace to be in the top four."

But Hamilton, who had been fastest at the start of Q2, was upset that he could not see out the job at Red Bull Ring.

"It was a big hit but I'm okay," he told Sky Sports. "I'm incredibly disappointed in myself ultimately and so sorry to the team who worked so hard to put this car together.

"I lost the back end into Turn 7 and that was that. I'm encouraged. I'm encouraged of course to see our performance. We weren't expecting for it to be as close as that today.

"That is a huge positive from the team but I am really quite far back [for the sprint] so I don't know what is possible from there. Hopefully I can make up for some lost time."

 

Following Hamilton and Russell's crashes, there was time for one final lap for the remaining eight drivers.

Leclerc and Sainz looked set to claim a Ferrari one-two, only for Verstappen – who has now taken the last three pole positions on this track – to post a time of 1:04.984

That was 29 thousandths of a second quicker than Leclerc and leaves Verstappen well positioned to surpass Alain Prost for the most victories at the Austrian GP (three apiece).

"It was a very long wait of course between the two runs," the Dutchman said. "That is never great as once you are in the rhythm you want to keep going.

"Also the track temperature dropping, the wind changing a little bit, but in the end it was a very tight qualifying and it is a really challenging track to get everything right.

"There aren't many corners but the ones you have are quite tricky and easy to make a mistake. I'm quite happy with pole but also tomorrow and Sunday you can get the points. 

"It's incredible to see the crowd here and see so much orange. It puts a smile on my face and hopefully we can make it a great weekend."

Verstappen leads team-mate Sergio Perez by 34 points heading into the weekend's action, while Leclerc is 43 points behind after failing to build on a bright start to the season.

After pushing Verstappen all the way in qualifying for the 24-lap sprint, which establishes the grid for the main grand prix, Leclerc is hoping to do likewise over the next two days.

"I just want to have a clean race," he said. "It's been five races where I've had a bit of a disaster on my side. 

"I just hope that everything will go clean in the weekend and we can finally score the points that we deserve."


PROVISIONAL CLASSIFICATION

1. Max Verstappen (Red Bull) 1:04.984
2. Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) +0.029
3. Carlos Sainz (Ferrari) +0.082
4. Sergio Perez (Red Bull) +0.420
5. George Russell (Mercedes) +0.447
6. Esteban Ocon (Alpine) +0.742
7. Kevin Magnussen (Haas) +0.895
8. Mick Schumacher (Haas) +1.027
9. Fernando Alonso (Alpine) +1.119
10. Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes) +8.167

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