Bahrain Grand Prix: Max Verstappen on pole for first race of 2021 F1 season

Red Bull driver Max Verstappen will start on pole position at the Bahrain Grand Prix.

The Dutchman will be alongside Lewis Hamilton in the front row for the season-opener following an exhilarating qualifying session.

Verstappen delivered a supreme final lap to see off seven-time world champion Hamilton by almost four-tenths with his Mercedes team-mate Valtteri Bottas third.

“Finally,” said Verstappen. “That lap was good.”

Red Bull team principal Christian Horner congratulated his star driver over the radio, saying: “Well done, Max that is the perfect start to the season.”

It is the first time in the sport’s V6 turbo hybrid era that began in 2013 that Mercedes, winners of the drivers’ and constructors’ championships for the past seven years, have not taken pole for the first race. 

Hamilton said after the session: “Congratulations to Max. I gave it everything I had but it wasn’t enough. I got everything I could from the car.

“We did a good job coming back from testing and to improve like this.”