P1racenews AI automatic summary:
Max Verstappen looked set to claim pole position on his final lap in qualifying, at the Circuit of the Americas.
Max Verstappen acknowledged that a critical mistake led to him losing pole position for the United States Grand Prix, despite missing out on the opportunity to gain “free” lap time. Despite his victory in the F1 sprint, the reigning world champion was the driver to watch during qualifying. Verstappen dominated Q1 and Q2, but an error on his first Q3 lap handed pole position to his title rival, Lando Norris. A misstep at Turn 19 cost Verstappen, with his initial lap time being just 0.031s slower than Norris’. However, the Dutch driver believed he could have secured pole had it not been for the error, as he was ahead of Norris in the first sector of his final lap. Although a crash by George Russell at the penultimate corner resulted in double-waved yellow flags and no one improving their times, Verstappen was content with his front row start but acknowledged that without the mistake, pole position was within reach.
