Formula 1

Canadian GP: Verstappen storms to pole, Hulkenberg P2 in wet qualifying

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Max Verstappen stormed to pole position ahead of Nico Hulkenberg in a rain-hit qualifying at the Canadian Grand Prix.

The reigning champion finished 1.2s clear of the Haas driver as they were the only drivers to manage two flying laps while conditions were at their best in Q3.

Fernando Alonso had been Verstappen's closest competition in stable conditions but had to settle for third in the Aston Martin.

Q1

Qualifying began with Zhou Guanyu having drive problems out of the pits and stopping at Turn 7.

That would cause a red flag, but the Alfa Romeo driver got his car going again and returned to the pits.

When the session resumed, Verstappen and Alonso swapped the fastest times as the track began to quickly dry out.

With lap times improving, there was a scramble to be among the last to cross the line before the chequered flag.

The big loser was Pierre Gasly, who had his final lap ruined by a slow-moving Carlos Sainz in the final chicane and was eliminated in 17th.

Yuki Tsunoda was the first driver knocked out in 16th and was also involved in an impeding incident with Hulkenberg.

The second AlphaTauri of Nyck De Vries claimed 18th with Logan Sargeant and Zhou completing the bottom five.

Q2

Tyres were the big topic as Q2 began with Alex Albon gambling on soft tyres and going fastest while the rest initially headed out on inters.

Lance Stroll proved conditions were still tricky though by spinning through Turn 5 but just avoided the barriers.

Everyone responded to Albon's pace by pitting for slicks with McLaren the big beneficiary as both cars moved up the order. But more rain began to fall, preventing those who changed late from improving.

That was bad news for Charles Leclerc, Sergio Perez and Stroll, who were all eliminated in P11-P13 respectively.

For Leclerc, the result was particularly frustrating as he wanted slicks at the same time as Albon but his request was denied by Ferrari.

Kevin Magnussen followed the high-profile trio in 14th with Valtteri Bottas in 15th.

Q3

With conditions worsening again, Verstappen was first out and set the benchmark with a 1m25.858s on his second flying lap.

Nico Hulkenberg put his Haas into second,1.2s slower than the Red Bull but just ahead of Alonso in third for Aston Martin.

The action was then stopped by Oscar Piastri crashing at Turn 7, preventing anyone from improving as the rain intensified further.

Lewis Hamilton led teammate George Russell as the two Mercedes' claimed fourth and fifth.

Esteban Ocon was sixth, followed by Norris, Sainz and Piastri in ninth.

Albon was on a lap good enough for second but missed the final chicane and only finished 10th.

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