Max Verstappen loses Qatar Grand Prix pole to George Russell after qualifying penalty
Max Verstappen has lost his pole position for the Qatar Grand Prix after being penalized for impeding George Russell during qualifying. Verstappen initially secured pole by just 0.055 seconds but was demoted to second place. The penalty was confirmed over three hours after qualifying ended. Stewards stated Verstappen was "driving unnecessarily slowly" while trying to cool his tires, which affected Russell's lap. As a result, Russell will start at the front of the grid for the race. He expressed that Verstappen's actions likely cost him the pole position.