Max Verstappen stormed to an unexpected pole position at the British Grand Prix as Oscar Piastri, George Russell, Lando Norris and Lewis Hamilton were all left scratching their heads. The first part of qualifying was interrupted by an unfortunate moment for Franco Colapinto. The under-fire Argentine spun while putting the power down out of Club corner, gently hitting the barriers. He tried to nurse his Alpine machine back to the pit lane but was forced to pull over, bringing his Saturday running to a premature end.

When the cars returned to the track, purple sectors popped up everywhere, but Ferrari left Lewis Hamilton in a difficult spot with a low-fuel strategy that didn’t pay off. At the end of Q1, only Pierre Gasly separated him from an early elimination.

Hamilton and Charles Leclerc flirted with the bottom five once again in Q2, but the Ferrari duo finally stretched their legs with their final runs, storming to the top of the timing screens on fresh rubber.

There was a feel-good moment for Alpine and Gasly, too, as the Frenchman put his A525 machine into the top 10. Team Enstone are rooted to the bottom of the Constructors’ Championship standings heading into the halfway mark of the 2025 campaign. Oliver Bearman also impressed in sixth for Haas.