George Russell converted Mercedes’ promise into pole position for the Las Vegas Grand Prix, but team-mate Lewis Hamilton was left ruing a missed opportunity after making two costly errors in Q3.
Mercedes delivered the pace expected in Q1 with Russell and Hamilton topping the timing screens. Max Verstappen was able to finish the session in third, despite the limitations of the RB20 this weekend, but the same could not be said for his team-mate, Sergio Perez.
The Mexican racer was eliminated in the first part of qualifying, dealing a brutal blow to Red Bull’s chances of finishing ahead of Ferrari in the Constructors’ Championship standings come the chequered flag in Abu Dhabi.
Q2 was quiet on drama spare for a heroic effort from Sauber’s departing Zhou Guanyu, who narrowly missed out on a first top-10 start of the season. The lull abruptly ended on the final runs, though, as Franco Colapinto found the wall in the final sector.
The in-demand Williams star hit the inside wall, sending him careening into the outside barrier at speed. This crash was a disaster for the Grove-based team who are extremely short on spare parts to get them through to the end of the season.
