Piastri Stuns Verstappen to Take Pole After Tsunoda Scary Crash at Emilia-Romagna GP

McLaren ace edges Red Bull star in dramatic qualifying marred by Tsunoda’s airborne smash

Oscar Piastri pulled off the biggest qualifying upset of his Formula 1 career by snatching pole position for the Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix, narrowly edging out reigning world champion Max Verstappen in a chaotic Saturday session punctuated by red flags and high drama at Imola.

The Australian’s final lap in Q3 proved just enough to secure top spot by a razor-thin margin of 0.034 seconds, despite getting baulked by traffic in the closing corners. It was a nerveless performance in unpredictable conditions that highlighted McLaren’s continued upward trajectory — and gave Piastri a maiden pole he won’t soon forget.

But the session was overshadowed by a terrifying crash for Red Bull’s Yuki Tsunoda, whose car became briefly airborne after losing control through the Villeneuve chicane. The Japanese driver thankfully walked away unhurt, but the high-speed incident was a stark reminder of the razor’s edge on which F1 operates.

A wild session with twists and turns

Qualifying at Imola had it all: pace, peril, surprises, and strategic curveballs. Two red flags interrupted the flow, first for Tsunoda’s crash and later for Alpine rookie Franco Colapinto, who also slid off into the barriers at the Tamburello chicane. Thankfully, both drivers emerged unharmed.

The pole battle, as many expected, came down to the McLarens and Verstappen’s Red Bull. Verstappen looked imperious after the first Q3 runs, posting a benchmark that seemed tough to beat. But Piastri had other ideas.

The McLaren driver strung together two sensational sectors to start his final lap, but encountered a train of cars preparing their own flyers at the double left-hander Rivazza. Despite losing time in the final sector, his early pace carried him ahead of Verstappen — just barely.

The Dutchman responded, improving his time marginally, but not enough. For the second time this season, Verstappen finds himself outqualified at a venue where he usually dominates.

“Very tough session with the red flags and the tyres,” Piastri said afterwards. “The soft compound was a bit of a mystery. I had four cars in front of me in the last sector, so I thought I’d blown it. But luckily the first part of the lap was enough.”

McLaren rise, Ferrari falter

Oscar Piastri pulled off the biggest qualifying upset of his Formula 1

While McLaren celebrated a front-row start and further proof their recent upgrades are bearing fruit, Ferrari endured a miserable qualifying at their home Grand Prix. Neither Charles Leclerc nor Carlos Sainz managed to progress to Q3, a shock result that left the Tifosi deflated.

Leclerc wound up 11th, with Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton alongside in 12th — two of the sport’s biggest names struggling for answers. Hamilton was particularly distraught, lamenting a failure to get the tyres into the right temperature window despite strong pace in earlier sessions.

“We’ve made some really good progress this weekend and it doesn’t show in the results, which is why I’m devastated,” said the seven-time world champion. “It feels like we made all the right changes, but we just didn’t switch on the tyre.”

Mercedes teammate George Russell, by contrast, managed to deliver when it counted. Using the medium compound rather than the softs in Q3, Russell leapfrogged McLaren’s Lando Norris to claim third on the grid, with Norris slipping to fourth.

Aston Martin’s gamble pays off

Oscar Piastri pulled off the biggest qualifying upset of his Formula 1

Aston Martin rolled the dice on tyre strategy and came out smiling. With a major upgrade package on the car this weekend — including a new floor and engine cover inspired by design guru Adrian Newey — the team leaned heavily into the medium tyre throughout qualifying.

Fernando Alonso and Lance Stroll both made Q3, with Alonso going on to snatch fifth place with a brilliant lap on worn mediums, despite initially running seventh on softs.

“It’s a bit better than expected,” Alonso said. “Both cars in Q3, the car felt competitive, and the new parts are performing well. So let’s see what we can do in the race.”

The result marked Aston Martin’s strongest Saturday showing of the season so far and offered hope that their development path is finally turning the tide in what’s been a challenging year.

Youngsters make headlines for different reasons

Italian teenager Kimi Antonelli made his home qualifying debut for Mercedes, but the 18-year-old couldn’t quite break into the top ten, ending the day in 13th. Still, it was a composed display that showed why many regard him as a star of the future.

Alpine debutant Franco Colapinto, meanwhile, had a session to forget. His off-track moment at Tamburello ended his qualifying prematurely and brought out the second red flag. Nevertheless, the young Argentine was unscathed and will have the opportunity to gain valuable race experience on Sunday.

Tyre talk: Softs under scrutiny

This weekend, Pirelli brought their three softest compounds in a bid to shake up strategy at a track notorious for one-stop races. But the C6 soft tyre proved difficult to manage, leaving drivers struggling for grip by the final sector.

“The soft was maybe a bit too soft for this track,” Verstappen said. “Sector one was good, but then the tyres just fell away. George set his time on a medium — maybe that was the better call.”

Piastri echoed the sentiment: “Today the C6 was a real mystery.”

With race pace expected to favour those who can extend stints and manage degradation, the medium compound may prove the tyre of choice on Sunday. That plays into the hands of teams like Aston Martin and Mercedes, who’ve shown the ability to maximise the medium’s potential.

The stage is set

With the top four on the grid covered by less than a tenth of a second, and several heavy-hitters buried deep in the field, the Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix promises fireworks. Can Piastri convert his breakthrough pole into a maiden win? Will Verstappen muscle his way to the front yet again? And can Ferrari mount a fightback on home soil?

Sunday’s race has all the ingredients of a classic — and after a qualifying session filled with chaos, crashes and career-best laps, anything feels possible at Imola.