Qualifying Highlights | 2023 Japanese Grand Prix
Max Verstappen secured his fifth pole position of the season at the 2023 Japanese Grand Prix, with a stunning lap in the final seconds of qualifying. The Dutchman was over half a second clear of his nearest rival, Charles Leclerc, in second place.
Sergio Perez qualified third for Red Bull, ahead of Carlos Sainz in the second Ferrari. Fernando Alonso was a surprise fifth for Alpine, while Lewis Hamilton qualified sixth for Mercedes.
The qualifying session was interrupted by a red flag in the first phase, after Lance Stroll crashed at Turn 1. Stroll was unhurt, but his Williams car was badly damaged.
When the session resumed, Verstappen was the first driver to set a flying lap. He was quickly followed by Leclerc, who set a time that was 0.1 seconds faster than Verstappen's.
The two drivers continued to trade times, but it was Verstappen who had the upper hand in the final phase of qualifying. He set a lap time of 1:29.386, which was over half a second faster than Leclerc's best time.
Perez and Sainz rounded out the top four, while Alonso was a surprise fifth. The Alpine driver was just over a tenth of a second quicker than Hamilton in sixth.
Esteban Ocon qualified seventh for Alpine, ahead of Yuki Tsunoda in the AlphaTauri. Lando Norris qualified ninth for McLaren, while Daniel Ricciardo rounded out the top ten for the team.
The 2023 Japanese Grand Prix will take place on Sunday, September 24th, at 14:00 local time.
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