P1racenews AI automatic summary:
Verstappen: "Little tickles" to car the key to F1 Australian GP pole
The championship leader secured his third pole position of the season, preventing Ferrari and Carlos Sainz from leading the field on Sunday despite Sainz’s strong performance in Q1 and Q2. Verstappen struggled with his car’s balance throughout the weekend but made significant improvements leading up to Q3, ultimately delivering a dominant performance and a pole position time that Sainz couldn’t beat. Verstappen expressed satisfaction with his performance after some adjustments were made to the car, allowing him to push it to the limit and secure pole position.
Verstappen acknowledged that he had to chase the car more than usual, emphasizing the importance of fine-tuning the machine to maintain his team’s perfect record of pole positions. He recognized that improvements could still be made but noted the challenge of mastering every corner on the demanding Australian circuit.
Despite facing disruptions in Friday practice, Verstappen felt confident in his race performance and was able to gather valuable data in Saturday’s FP3 session. He anticipated a competitive race against Ferrari and remained optimistic about his chances.
