Two poles in two days for Red Bull’s Max Verstappen. A day after the Formula One’s leading driver claimed pole for the Austrian Grand Prix, he took the top spot in the shootout, which determines the grid for the sprint race later in the day.
Driving through damp conditions, Verstappen lead teammate Sergio Perez by half a second. The two Red Bull drivers will be atop the starting grid when the spring race begins at 10:30 a.m. ET on Saturday.
McLaren’s Lando Norris finished third in the shootout. It’s been an impressive weekend, so far, for Norris, who earned the fourth spot on the grid for Sunday’s grand prix. Nico Hulkenberg of Haas finished fourth, but he could face a grid penalty after running over a tire on his way out of the box after a pit stop.
Carlos Sainz and Charles Leclerc of Ferrari finished fifth and sixth, respectively. Fernando Alonso and Lance Stroll of Aston Martin came in seventh and eighth, with Esteban Ocon of Alpine and Kevin Magnussen of Haas rounding out the top 10.
Mercedes’ George Russell finished 15th after a technical issue. His teammate Lewis Hamilton finished 18th after his failure to stay within track limits on turn nine.
Here is the full starting grid for Saturday’s sprint race following the shootout.
2023 Austrian Grand Prix sprint starting grid
| Pos | Driver | No. |
|---|---|---|
| Pos | Driver | No. |
| 1 | Max Verstappen | 1 |
| 2 | Sergio Perez | 11 |
| 3 | Lando Norris | 4 |
| 4 | Nico Hulkenberg | 27 |
| 5 | Carlos Sainz | 55 |
| 6 | Charles Leclerc | 16 |
| 7 | Fernando Alonso | 14 |
| 8 | Lance Stroll | 18 |
| 9 | Esteban Ocon | 31 |
| 10 | Kevin Magnussen | 20 |
| 11 | Alexander Albon | 23 |
| 12 | Pierre Gasly | 10 |
| 13 | Yuki Tsunoda | 22 |
| 14 | Nyck De Vries | 21 |
| 15 | George Russell | 63 |
| 16 | Zhou Guanyu | 24 |
| 17 | Oscar Piastri | 81 |
| 18 | Lewis Hamilton | 44 |
| 19 | Valtteri Bottas | 77 |
| 20 | Logan Sargeant | 2 |