George Russell put Mercedes on pole for the Las Vegas Grand Prix on Friday as Max Verstappen moved a step closer to a fourth successive Formula One title by qualifying ahead of Lando Norris.
Red Bull's Verstappen, who will retain his crown with two rounds to spare if he beats Norris on Saturday, secured fifth place on the grid with his McLaren rival sixth.
"We are still in front of McLaren, which for me is a bit of a surprise but I'm quite happy with how qualifying went and my laps," said Verstappen.
Norris must score three points more than the Dutch driver to continue the title battle in Qatar next weekend.
"I'll do everything I can," said Norris, whose team also risk losing ground to Ferrari in the constructors' championship. "I'm not going to give up until the end even if the chance is extremely thin."
Ferrari's Carlos Sainz joined Russell on the front row with Alpine's Pierre Gasly a surprising third fastest and Ferrari's Charles Leclerc was fourth.
When is the Las Vegas Grand Prix?
The Las Vegas Grand Prix takes place at the Las Vegas Strip Circuit in Nevada, USA on Saturday 23 November, 2024.
For UK fans, the Grand Prix itself will start at 6am GMT on Sunday 24 November 2024.
Las Vegas Grand Prix race schedule in full
(All times GMT)
Race: 06.00am, Sunday 24 November 2024
Las Vegas Grand Prix grid positions
The grid positions are as listed below.
The starting grid in Vegas 👀#F1 #LasVegasGP pic.twitter.com/UHpYItFJOi
— Formula 1 (@F1) November 23, 2024
How to watch Las Vegas Grand Prix
TV channel: In the UK, every session of the Las Vegas Grand Prix will be shown live Sky Sports.
Free highlights will be available post-race on the official F1 YouTube channel as well as on Channel 4 at 10pm.
Live stream: Sky subscribers can watch online via the Sky Go app.
