Max Verstappen had an excellent qualifying session at the Qatar Grand Prix on Saturday night, snatching pole position from favorites such as George Russell and Lando Norris. The performance ended a long drought for Verstappen – his last pole position was at the Austrian Grand Prix in July – after finishing eighth in the F1 sprint race earlier in the day. It was a shocking turnaround in performance.
However, doubts remain as to whether Verstappen will start from pole position.
Race officials have summoned Verstappen to investigate an impending incident that occurred during Q3 involving George Russell. When the Mercedes driver was starting a push lap near the end of the session, Verstappen was on the racing line in front of him.
The incident in question can be viewed here.
As mentioned above, Russell received a real-time warning from the Red Bull driver that it was “super dangerous.”
The citation says Verstappen may have been “driving unnecessarily slowly” during the qualifying session.
The standard penalty for interference during qualifying sessions is a three-place grid drop, but depending on what race officials hear from Verstappen, the Red Bull driver could start a little further back on the grid at lights out on Sunday night. Qatar.
