Abu Dhabi F1: Max Verstappen secures pole position for season-ending race

Ferrari's Charles Leclerc overcomes practice woes during qualifying on Saturday

Max Verstappen of Red Bull during qualifying for the Abu Dhabi GP on Saturday, November 25, 2023. Victor Besa / The National

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Formula One champion Max Verstappen delivered when it mattered most during qualifying at the season-ending Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, seldom looking like being challenged for the top slot.

Some sketchy results during earlier practices made many wonder if the Dutchman and his Red Bull team were having an off weekend.

Not so though, and Verstappen reasserted himself as obvious favourite for Sunday's race.

Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc rediscovered his form, securing the runner-up position at Yas Marina Circuit.

The third fastest driver in the final session was Oscar Piastri of McLaren. Mercedes’s George Russell was unable to hit the heights of his two leaderboard-topping practice sessions this weekend, but a fourth spot puts him in contention when the lights turn green on race day.

Lando Norris of McLaren came in fifth, despite a few squiggles near the crash barriers. AlphaTauri’s Yuki Tsunoda, Aston Martin’s Fernando Alonso, Haas’s Nico Hulkenberg, Red Bull’s Sergio Perez and Alpine’s Pierre Gasly make up the rest of the top 10.

Lewis Hamilton’s performance in the Mercedes summed up a tough couple of seasons with a number 11 placing.

Mercedes have struggled for form, and Hamilton was knocked out of Q2. The seven-time F1 champion said there was “something not right with this car” and could well face a second straight season without a win.

Meanwhile, Aston Martin's Lance Stroll, Alpine’s Alex Albon, AlphaTauri's Daniel Ricciardo and Alpha Romeo’s Valtteri Bottas also finished in the lower half, despite each showing some promise earlier on in the weekend.

Verstappen was understandably relieved after the session, describing his performance as a “turnaround”.

“Very weird,” he said. “The whole weekend so far has been a bit of a struggle but we definitely improved the car for qualifying.”

Grip appeared to be a key element of the change in fortunes for Red Bull, with Verstappen saying that, here at Yas, it had all been about tyres and "how they behaved”.

When asked about what might happen on Sunday, the Dutchman said: “Let’s see. I have no idea how we’re going to do in the race, but we’re usually quite decent.”

This is the 32nd pole position of Verstappen’s career, which statisticians reveal puts him level with Nigel Mansell.

For his part, Leclerc said he had “made life difficult” for himself by sliding too much during the session.

“The last lap I had to put everything together,” he added. “Really happy with second place.”

Rather than going for out-and-out victory though, the Ferrari driver said the team’s main goal was to beat Mercedes in the constructor’s championship.

“That is all that matters this weekend," he explained.

Piastri described the entire event so far as “a bit of a messy one”.

“Happy with that though and happy to be back in the top three,” he said.

The final race of 2023 starts at 5pm.