Max Verstappen secured his and Red Bull Racing's first pole position of the 2026 Formula 1 season in qualifying for the Bahrain Grand Prix in Malaysia, beating Lewis Hamilton to the top spot at the returning Sepang International Circuit.
Verstappen showed impressive pace throughout the weekend and continued that form where it mattered, topping all three qualifying sessions before producing a blistering 1:35.130 in Q3.
That was enough to put the Red Bull driver 0.298 seconds clear of Hamilton, who produced a strong final run for Ferrari to claim second on the grid.
The result marks Verstappen's first pole since the 2025 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix and the 49th of his Formula 1 career. It also represents a significant turnaround for Red Bull, which, along with the rest of the grid, has been chasing Mercedes for much of the 2026 campaign.
Isack Hadjar made it a particularly strong qualifying session for Red Bull by taking third, just 0.428 seconds behind his teammate. However, the Frenchman will drop five places on the starting grid due to an engine-related penalty. That promotes championship leader Kimi Antonelli to third, with Ferrari's Charles Leclerc moving up to fourth.
Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri will occupy the third row for McLaren, while George Russell will start a disappointing seventh after qualifying eighth. Pierre Gasly and Gabriel Bortoleto completed the top 10.
Mercedes endured a more difficult session than expected after appearing particularly strong earlier in the weekend. Antonelli had a nervous Q2 after his lap was deleted for track limits, forcing him to make an additional run before progressing into Q3. Russell, meanwhile, could only manage eighth-fastest, a big comedown from last weekend, and a suggestion that Mercedes' new upgrades aren't working.
Could we be looking at Verstappen's first win of the season tomorrow? It certainly looks likely, though that first corner promises to be very interesting.
Stay tuned tomorrow for all the latest updates from the Bahrain Grand Prix.