The McLaren driver relegated local hero and world champion Max Verstappen to second place in qualifying for the Dutch Grand Prix on Saturday. The Red Bull star was a considerable 0.356 seconds behind his British rival. Third in an affair affected by gusts was Oscar Piastri (+0.499) in the McLaren ahead of Mercedes man George Russell (+0.571 seconds).
Mercedes had recently returned with three wins in four races before the summer break. The Silver Arrows had to struggle at Zandvoort. Spa winner Lewis Hamilton surprisingly failed in the second qualifying segment (12th). The record world champion also faced a penalty after impeding Perez. The Ferraris also performed poorly. Charles Leclerc had to make do with sixth place (+0.909) behind Sergio Perez (Red Bull), Carlos Sainz was eliminated in Q2 in 11th place.
Verstappen is about to make his 200th Grand Prix start on Sunday (3 p.m./live ServusTV, RTL, Sky). In the World Championship, he still has a comfortable lead of 78 points over Norris, who is on pole for the fourth time, before the 15th of 24 races of the season. Verstappen has won the last three races in his home country, but the triple champion has been waiting for a Grand Prix victory for four races.
