Max Verstappen hadn’t sat on pole position all season. That changed at Sepang, where the Dutchman delivered a 1:35.130 that not only topped the timesheet but handed him his first pole of the entire 2026 campaign, and fittingly, it came at the same circuit where he won the Bahrain Grand Prix the last time Formula 1 raced here, back in 2017.
The bigger story for a lot of fans, though, sits one place below him. Lewis Hamilton qualified second with a 1:35.428, his best qualifying result in quite a while, giving Ferrari something it hasn’t had in some time, a genuine shot at fighting from the front row on Sunday.
A Q1 that already set the tone for the day
The pattern was clear from the very first cut. Verstappen led Q1 with a 1:36.477, with Hamilton right on his heels just 0.118 seconds back. Sergio Perez, Valtteri Bottas, Lance Stroll, Oliver Bearman, Alex Albon, Esteban Ocon and Nico Hulkenberg were all eliminated, a list that confirms the back of the grid remains tough territory for several teams this weekend.
In Q2, Verstappen was fastest again with a 1:35.696. This time, Liam Lawson, Fernando Alonso, Carlos Sainz, Franco Colapinto and Arvid Lindblad all went out, the latter already carrying an engine penalty that was going to send him to the back of the grid regardless of how he qualified.
The Q3 lap that decided everything
When it came down to the moment that mattered, Verstappen left no room for doubt. His 1:35.130 proved untouchable even as rivals improved on fresh soft tyres late in the session, opening up a commanding 0.495-second gap over Hamilton in what was otherwise an extremely tight top ten, with barely 2.5 seconds covering first to tenth.
Isack Hadjar actually set the third-fastest time on track with a 1:35.558, continuing the form that has made him one of the stories of the season, but an engine penalty confirmed earlier in the weekend drops him down the final grid regardless of that lap. Kimi Antonelli recovered well to take fourth with a 1:35.631 after having a lap deleted earlier in the session, with Charles Leclerc rounding out the top five for Ferrari in 1:35.666.
There were a couple of extra flashpoints along the way. Antonelli lost a lap for exceeding track limits at Turn 6 during Q2, while Fernando Alonso picked up a black and white warning for the same infraction later in the session. Verstappen himself also picked up a black and white flag, though for a very different reason, driving unnecessarily slowly on a warm-up lap.
Final grid order
Between the engine penalties for Hadjar and Lindblad, and the double sanction for Colapinto stemming from his Baku collision and an extra power unit component, the actual grid for Sunday looks quite different from the order set on track. Here is how the confirmed starting order shapes up:
POLE POSITION RESULTS
| POS | DRIVER | TEAM | TIME |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Verstappen | Red Bull | 1:35.130 |
| 2 | Hamilton | Ferrari | 1:35.428 |
| 3 | Antonelli | Mercedes | 1:35.631 |
| 4 | Leclerc | Ferrari | 1:35.666 |
| 5 | Norris | McLaren | 1:35.757 |
| 6 | Piastri | McLaren | 1:35.762 |
| 7 | Russell | Mercedes | 1:35.871 |
| 8 | Hadjar | Red Bull | 1:35.558 |
| 9 | Gasly | Alpine | 1:37.210 |
| 10 | Bortoleto | Audi | 1:37.673 |
| 11 | Lawson | Racing Bulls | 1:35.912 |
| 12 | Alonso | Aston Martin | 1:35.978 |
| 13 | Sainz | Williams | 1:36.045 |
| 14 | Stroll | Aston Martin | 1:36.751 |
| 15 | Colapinto | Alpine | 1:36.189 |
| 16 | Lindblad | Racing Bulls | 1:36.344 |
| 17 | Hulkenberg | Audi | 1:37.142 |
| 18 | Bearman | Haas | 1:36.829 |
| 19 | Ocon | Haas | 1:37.015 |
| 20 | Albon | Williams | 1:36.903 |
| 21 | Bottas | Cadillac | 1:36.688 |
| 22 | Perez | Cadillac | 1:36.612 |
Hadjar’s case is the clearest example of how harsh engine component rules can be: he drove a lap good enough for third place on raw pace and still starts eighth. Colapinto, coming off a tough weekend in Baku, picks up yet another penalty and starts 15th despite the midfield being tightly bunched all session.
What this means for Sunday
With Verstappen finally on pole after a season without one, and Red Bull showing the strongest single-lap pace of the weekend, everything points to the Dutchman starting as the clear favorite for the race. But the fight for the rest of the podium promises to be far more interesting. Hamilton starting second gives Ferrari its best shot in weeks at getting back on the podium, provided he can sustain the pace over a long race in Sepang’s trademark heat.
Antonelli, arriving as championship leader, also has a strong starting position to keep extending his lead, while Mercedes will need Russell to recover a fair amount of ground from seventh if the team wants to score meaningful points in the constructors’ battle. And with Hadjar lurking just outside the top five on raw pace despite his grid drop, don’t be surprised if he’s a factor in the opening laps.
Do you think Verstappen’s drought-ending pole is the start of a late-season surge, or can Hamilton and Ferrari actually turn this front row lockout into a race win? Let us know your take in the comments and share this piece if you enjoyed the qualifying recap from Sepang.
Sources: f1oversteer.com, gpblog.com, planetf1.com, athlonsports.com, autosport.com, racefans.net, grandprix247.com, crash.net, motorsport.com
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