Max Verstappen survives 'a close one' to land pole position for 2022 F1 Mexican GP

Max Verstappen took the pole position at the 2022 F1 Mexican GP, beating Mercedes' George Russell in P2 by more than three-tenths of a second. The Dutchman is now within a hair's breadth of breaking Michael Schumacher and Sebastian Vettel's record for the most number of wins in a single season.

The Dutchman scored his first pole position in Mexico, having won the race last year from P3 on the grid. The 2022 F1 world champion seemed to be on the back foot throughout the qualifying session but managed to put in the best lap of the day at the end of Q3.

The 25-year-old was not on form in the first two parts of qualifying, with the two Mercedes cars seemingly having the upper hand over the rest of the field. The Silver Arrows did well in Mexico City, with George Russell and Lewis Hamilton having finished the qualifying session in P2 and P3 respectively.

Speaking to David Coulthard in parc fermé after the session, Max Verstappen said:

"Yeah, it was a good qualifying. It was a close one but after FP3, we made a few adjustments and then the car got into a better rhythm and to be on pole here is, of course, amazing. It's a very long run into turn 1, so we do need a good start but anyway. I think we have a quick car and that is what's important."

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Max Verstappen spoke about exaggerated statistics in 2022 F1 season

Max Verstappen downplayed his 13-race win record, equalling Michael Schumacher and Sebastian Vettel. The Dutchman felt the long F1 calendars in modern times exaggerated the statistics.

Speaking at a post-race press conference in Austin, the Red Bull driver said:

"I mean, I've said before that we are also doing more races a year, so they are not always justifiable. I mean, I think, yeah, we are having an amazing season, but of course when you have a great car, you can win a lot of races."

The freshly crowned two-time world champion can now break Schumacher and Vettel's record if he wins another race in 2022. As percentages go, however, Schumacher will still have the upper hand over Verstappen unless the Dutchman can manage to win all three of the remaining races this year.

The reigning world champion has never been fascinated with statistics and records in the past. While he is proud to win races, he feels it is easier to break records with a competitive car.

Having put himself in pole position for Sunday's race, Max Verstappen has given himself the best possible chance of breaking this long-standing record.