00:02Hamilton is up on the benchmark but where can Sergio Perez go? Crucial that he improves 12th
00:09fastest time for him it's Alvin, Bottas, Colopinto and Lawson in the drop zone. Hamilton goes to the
00:15top of the times with a 1.332. Russell is improving on that he's been the lead Mercedes on the
00:21grid
00:2216 times this year he goes three hundredths of a second faster that's the front of the field.
00:27We look further down there is an almighty scrap going on to make it through this is on board with
00:33Esteban Ocon. Alvin is done he's come across the line he's in 17th. Fernando Alonso moves to the drop
00:39zone he's not finding any improvement in terms of the sectors. Lance Stroll is out there trying for
00:44a last gasped attempt there's an improvement that matters for Liam Lawson in the RB he gets to 14th
00:51the driver at risk is Sergio Perez the driver in the drop zone is Sergio Perez because Yuki
00:57Tsunoda in the junior team in the RB has managed to get to 10th.
01:02And this is not a bad lap for Lance Stroll who's out and doing one flyer in the whole session
01:08he's
01:09got the best of the track for it I don't think he's gonna be at the back of the grid.
01:11Let's find out where Stroll can go he only had one opportunity.
01:15He is the back of the grid.
01:20But Sergio Perez finds himself falling at the first hurdle once again he is the headline at the start of
01:28this qualifying hour. Sixth time he's out in Q1 this year.
01:33Gasly is the only one really on a tidy lap outside of the top 10. Colopinto's had a very mediocre
01:38first sector. Magnussen sneaks up into ninth. Gasly's going quickly in the Alpine and remember there's a lot at stake
01:44for these teams after what happened in Brazil.
01:45Good improvement for HĂĽlkenberg up to seventh place. Magnussen has put it P9. Sainz has put it into P2 but
01:52what about that drop zone? Very very close now as we come over the line. Good effort from Joe Guan
01:57Yu. He's just missed out by eight hundredths of a second but 11th is strong.
02:01That is seemingly backing out. Vicar bailing out of the lap and that's not ideal. What about Ocon? He was
02:10very close. Oh big crash! And once again there's a Williams with enormous damage. Franco Colopinto trying to find his
02:18way into the top 10.
02:20finds the barrier instead. The red flag will be out and our top 10 is set. That's a big contact
02:27with the wall.
02:28Our first contact with the wall all weekend long and there's more work for the Williams mechanics. Franco Colopinto with
02:36a big one.
02:37Most important thing is he's radioed to the team. He's all right.
02:43Ah, hit the inside wall. There you go. And that is an immovable concrete wall. And that's just a driver
02:51error misjudgment.
02:53And there is plenty of debris once again for the Williams team to sift through. They are having a really
02:59tough time of it in recent weeks.
03:04I don't think it's a particularly strong lap at the moment from either McLaren in the first part of the
03:10lap compared to what we've seen so far.
03:12They are though on a set of tyres that have done one lap already. So I think these went on
03:15at the end of Q2.
03:16So Verstappen begins his real flying lap. Piastri's time is beaten by Lando Norris.
03:24It's a 1.33.2 for Norris, chasing his eighth pole position of the season.
03:29Piastri is in second at 33.5. Gasly does a 33.6. That's a strong time from Gasly.
03:35Maybe shows that Piastri not quite where he wanted to be with overall performance.
03:40Here's the man who was second in Q3 one year ago. Took a penalty for the grid,
03:45but he's taken that Ferrari to the front of the field. He's two tenths of a second ahead of the
03:50two McLarens.
03:51Russell is absolutely flying on his first fully fledged lap in Q3.
03:57Second fastest for Max Verstappen. Remember he was up at the second sector.
04:01That long blast down the strip and he's fallen back to second, two tenths of a second away.
04:06But does anyone have an answer to the pace of the Silver Arrows?
04:11First over the line through the 17th and final corner is George Russell to provisional pole by two tenths of
04:18a second.
04:19That's one. Where's the second one?
04:21Lewis Hamilton trying to get a slipstream from HĂĽlkenberg.
04:25The hat is punching a hole in the air for the seven-time world champion, but he's backed out of
04:29it at this stage.
04:30He's not in contention and he will have to go again. Russell the driver to beat. Six minutes to go.
04:38So this is turn 12. That is exactly why he's backed out of the lap. Front left lockup.
04:45Oh, that's a feather touch of the wall.
04:48Yeah, hit the wall exit of five.
04:53The McLarens at the front trying to climb to the front row. First of all, Piastri just misses out.
05:00He was close. A hundredth of a second away from the front row of the field.
05:03Piastri couldn't do it in one McLaren. How about the man who's been on pole seven times this year?
05:08Front row for Lando Norris. Charles Leclerc, fastest middle sector of the entire session so far.
05:15And Charles Leclerc finds a mighty final sector to climb to provisional pole.
05:22Hamilton's still pushing on. Can Hamilton find anything? No, he's going to be in tenth place.
05:28Sainz takes it away from Charles Leclerc. George Russell will need a response.
05:34He's the fastest driver in the first sector, but it's all to play for in the middle.
05:39Gasly's gone second in an Alpine.
05:41Unbelievable from Pierre Gasly on the podium last time out.
05:45Here's the championship leader, Max Verstappen, only fourth. How has Gasly done that?
05:50How is Pierre Gasly splitting the Ferraris? Here's the man trying to take pole once again.
05:56He's done it! George Russell takes his third pole position of the year to punch the air with delight.
06:04A fourth career pole in Formula One in an incredible session that came alive at the end.
06:10We wondered whether it would be a foregone conclusion. It was anything but.
06:15First Leclerc, then Gasly, then Sainz. They all found themselves on the front row.
06:20But it's Russell who climbs back there. He'll start the Las Vegas Grand Prix from the front of the field.
06:26Zubaba. Pole position, mate. Well done.
06:30Zubaba. That's a new one. Come on. Nice one.
06:34Brilliant job. Well done, bro.
06:38Let's go, baby! Love that!
06:42Well done, mate.
06:43George Russell's third pole position of the season. In low temperatures, he just seems to thrive.
06:49Canada, Great Britain, and now Las Vegas. It's Carlos Sainz alongside him on the front row.
06:55It will be some tussle for victory between those two.
06:5822.
06:5922.
06:5922.
06:5922.
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