Published: 14:00, 2 July 2022 | Updated: 16:49, 2 July 2022
Carlos Sainz took the first pole position of his career at a rain-soaked Silverstone.
The Ferrari man held his nerve in tricky conditions to pip Red Bull’s Max Verstappen by 0.072sec to start the British Grand Prix from the front. Charles Leclerc, in the other Ferrari, was the third best performer on what was eventually a drying track. The rain came and went throughout the hour.
Lewis Hamilton was fifth fastest on his home track, a place behind Sergio Perez of Red Bull.
Carlos Sainz took the first pole position of his career at a rain-soaked Silverstone on Saturday
He will line up alongside Max Verstappen with team-mate Charles Leclerc down in third
Brits Lando Norris and George Russell were sixth and eighth for McLaren and Mercedes respectively.
Regardless of the weather, it was a relief that some real action was taking place after a week mired in racist slurs and plenty of bickering.
Norris complained that conditions were getting ‘too bad’, saying he was ‘aquaplaning’ during Q2. Valtteri Bottas said: ‘I can’t see s***’. But the show went on, and rightly so.
Lewis Hamilton qualified fifth and will be hoping for improvement in the race on Sunday
The Aston Martins are going nowhere fast. Their green cars finished bottom and third-last, Lance Stroll eight-tenths behind his team-mate and four-time world champion Sebastian Vettel.
London-born Thai Alex Albon qualified 16th for Oxfordshire-based Williams.
His team-mate Nicholas Latifi was 10th best – a career-best showing, albeit helped by intensifying rain depriving rivals the chance to improve on their times.
Sainz will hope he can fend off Verstappen and Leclerc to take his first ever victory
Sportsmail’s Kieran Lynch provided qualifying updates as the Formula One campaign continues at the British Grand Prix.
