Max Verstappen fends off Charles Leclerc to secure pole position for the 2022 F1 Austrian GP

The 2022 F1 Austrian GP had everything: fantastic competition, drama, red flags, and a popular pole position for Max Verstappen. The Red Bull driver fended off the fast-charging Ferraris of Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz to score pole position by a gap of just 0.029 seconds.

Unlike earlier forecasts, the session remained dry, and it became clear early on that it was going to be a close battle between Red Bull and Ferrari, with Mercedes being a wildcard in all of this. When all was said and done, it was Verstappen on top of the timesheets and the crowd gave him a rousing reception as he clinched pole position by the tiniest of margins. Leclerc came in 2nd, with Sainz in 3rd, and Sergio Perez was 4th with a time that was 0.4 seconds slower than his teammate.

After the first two rows, we have George Russell in 5th and Esteban Ocon in 6th. In the fourth row, we have the Haas drivers Kevin Magnussen and Mick Schumacher with Fernando Alonso (9th) and Lewis Hamilton (10th). So, in case you missed it, here's what happened in the 2022 F1 Austrian GP Qualifying.

---

2022 F1 Austrian GP Qualifying: Here's what happened

#1 Max Verstappen secures a popular pole position in qualifying for the Sprint

It wasn't all straightforward for Max Verstappen in the 2022 F1 Austrian GP qualifying. He had secured provisional pole position with his first lap but both the Mercedes drivers looked threatening in the first sector. Even in the case of his closest challenger, Verstappen was only 0.092 seconds faster than Charles Leclerc.

After multiple red flag stoppages, there was only enough time for one last timed lap. Throughout the lap, things did not look bright as Verstappen did not even post personal best times in S1 and S2. When Leclerc crossed the line and bettered Verstappen's time, it appeared as if the Ferrari had clinched pole position. Through all of this, Verstappen mustered enough lap time out of the third sector to secure pole position for Saturday's Sprint.

In what was quite a contrast from the 2022 F1 British GP, Verstappen received a rousing reception from his fans for securing pole position.

#2 Both Mercedes cars crash out of qualifying

By the end of Q2, there was a mouth-watering prospect of a Lewis Hamilton vs Max Verstappen vs Charles Leclerc battle for pole position in Q3. Mercedes showed impressive speed and Hamilton was able to hook together impressive laps one by one.

It did appear, however, that Red Bull and Ferrari turned up the heat in Q3 as even though both the Mercedes drivers had impressive S1 times, they could not hook things up in S2. After multiple tries, on a lap where it looked like Hamilton was trying to push too much, he ended up crashing out of qualifying.

It got worse as after the Hamilton crash induced a red flag period, George Russell too spun his car into the barriers in the last corner. In the end, it was P5 and P10 for the two Mercedes drivers as they hope to make amends during the sprint tomorrow.

#3 Fernando Alonso gets caught up in the red flag stoppages

Fernando Alonso was driving at a different level compared to his teammate in all sessions. Well, all but one, in Q3. The Spaniard's amazing rhythm made it seem like he was destined for either a best of the rest spot in P7 or higher if someone at the front slips up.

As it turns out, the Spaniard got his rhythm entirely out of whack with the first red flag. Because of the stoppages, Alonso was unable to put together a proper run in Q3 and will start the sprint in P9.

#4 Daniel Ricciardo and both the Aston Martins suffer Q1 elimination

The 2022 F1 Austrian GP has already delivered the jolt of the weekend as after Q1 we had the shocking sight of both Aston Martins being eliminated. To add to the already unexpected turn of events, Daniel Ricciardo also found himself out at the end of Q1.

Both the Aston Martin drivers struggled to find reasons behind such a result and had no answer for what happened. Similarly for the Australian, he was lost for words after another poor performance at the 2022 F1 Austrian GP qualifying.

#5 Alex Albon shows improvement with the upgraded Williams

Alex Albon sneaked through into Q2 of the 2022 F1 Austrian GP qualifying in a result that typifies his current F1 season. What was impressive, however, was how Albon did it as there was no luck involved. Rather, it was entirely down to the speed of the car.

In the process, Albon in his upgraded Williams was able to qualify ahead of both the Alfa Romeos in Friday's qualifying. There were question marks around the newly upgraded Williams after Silverstone. After today's qualifying, they all appear to have been answered.