Summary

  • Max Verstappen takes pole for United States GP sprint race in Austin

  • Title rival Lando Norris fourth with Russell second and Leclerc third

  • Hamilton seventh with Perez and Piastri both failing to reach SQ3

  • Verstappen leads Norris by 52 points in drivers' championship

  • US GP first of six races to conclude 2024 season

Live Reporting

Lorraine McKenna

  1. Danger zone

    11. Lance Stroll

    12. Fernando Alonso

    13. Liam Lawson

    14. Yuki Tsunoda

    15. Pierre Gasly

  2. Marc Priestley
    Former F1 mechanic on BBC Radio 5 Sports Extra

    He's second, I mean not very far, less than a tenth behind the Ferrari.

    Very very quick, good signs from the Red Bull driver.

  3. Sainz beats Hamilton's time

    Could this be Ferrari's weekend? Carlos Sainz sets a time 0.096 seconds better than Lewis Hamilton's to go top of the leaderboard with three minutes remaining. Max Verstappen now slots into second, just a fraction off the Spaniard's marker.

  4. Marc Priestley
    Former F1 mechanic on BBC Radio 5 Sports Extra

    Just think about where McLaren were 12 months ago.

    I came to the conclusion many years ago, you have to start judging success in Formula 1 not just by a championship win or a race win, but by making continuous improvements, if you're constantly moving forward, that's a success.

    McLaren have got to take this season as a success. It's now starting to happen for them.

  5. The medium tyres are bolted on again for SQ2, before drivers will move on to the soft compound sprint pole shootout.

    Lewis Hamilton has hit a purple first sector in his Mercedes, but it's team-mate George Russell who has gone top of the timesheets first with a 1:33.370.

    Not for long, however, as that quick first part of the lap has translated into a decent time for Hamilton and he's now the man to beat in this second session of sprint qualifying.

  6. Andrew Benson
    BBC F1 correspondent in Austin

    The FIA were saying they were checking the lap times from everybody else, in case anybody else had made the same mistake, so to stay in the car [at the end of SQ1].

  7. Go! Go! Go!

    Oscar Piastri exceeded track limits at Turn 19 after a huge slide in the McLaren. Maybe the slight silver lining for the team is that it's only sprint qualifying and not the main event.

    SQ2 is green.

  8. Jennie Gow
    F1 pit-lane reporter in Austin

    It's much more windy down here than it was before...

  9. 'That is disaster for Piastri'

    Marc Priestley
    Former F1 mechanic on BBC Radio 5 Sports Extra

    It's Oscar Piastri [who had his lap deleted].

    We talked about how crucial it was and he made that lap count, he's just had it deleted, which drops him into the elimination zone, right down in P16.

    That is going to see him out of qualifying, that is disaster!

  10. Out in SQ1

    16. Oscar Piastri (McLaren)

    17. Esteban Ocon (Alpine)

    18. Alex Albon (Williams)

    19. Valtteri Bottas (Sauber)

    20. Zhou Guanyu (Sauber)

  11. Oscar Piastri is out! The McLaren driver sees his lap time deleted, which drops him right into trouble.

  12. 'An identical lap time!'

    Harry Benjamin
    BBC F1 Commentator

    Albon the driver at risk. His team mate Franco Colapinto is in that elimination zone, down in 16th.

    They've actually set an identical lap time last time around, have Albon and Colapinto, but Albon set it first so he is 15th, Colapinto is 16th, but he's having another go, Colapinto.

  13. Woah! While Franco Colapinto drives to safety, his Williams team-mate Alex Albon suffers a mega spin at Turn 19. The Thai-British driver is able to save the car from any major danger and carry on, but those medium tyres are shot. "Sorry," Albon says on the team radio.

  14. With Sergio Perez's checkout of the drop zone hotel, Franco Colapinto now finds himself as an SQ1 elimination guest. Can the Argentine make it through to the next stage of sprint qualifying? He's up to 11th place after his latest flying lap.

  15. Marc Priestley
    Former F1 mechanic on BBC Radio 5 Sports Extra

    Look at that!

    Less than a tenth separating the top three and that's three drivers from three different teams in three different cars with just less than a tenth between them.

    That is staggering and really kind of representative of what a great Formula 1 season we are having right now.

  16. The two Williams of Alex Albon and Franco Colapinto are hovering just above the relegation zone in P14 and P15. Max Verstappen finishes his latest attempt and goes to third on the timesheets. Sergio Perez has been thrown a lifeline, but the Mexican can only lift his Red Bull up to seventh.

  17. Danger zone

    16. Esteban Ocon

    17. Nico Hulkenberg

    18. Valtteri Bottas

    19. Zhou Guanyu

    20. Sergio Perez

  18. Yuki Tsunoda goes second on the board but is now pushed down to third by the McLaren of Lando Norris, who replaces Kevin Magnussen at the top.

    But here come the Ferraris. Carlos Sainz manages third but Charles Leclerc goes straight to the best seat in the house - which rapidly turns to P2 because of Lewis Hamilton's swift flyer in the Mercedes.

  19. The Red Bull crosses the line and goes top of the timesheets with a 1:34.698 followed by the Haas of Nico Hulkenberg. Max Verstappen loses his top spot, however, as Kevin Magnussen banks the best lap time - three-tenths better than the Dutchman.

  20. 10 minutes to go

    If you've never seen/heard a sprint qualifying session, hold onto your hats, because it goes very fast. The last of the cars are heading out of the pit lane just as Max Verstappen, who was first out, is preparing for a flyer.