Max Verstappen claimed Red Bull's first pole position of the campaign, edging out Lewis Hamilton in qualifying for the Bahrain Grand Prix held at Malaysia's Sepang International Circuit.
The pair will occupy the front row for Sunday's race at 8am, with build-up coverage beginning at 6.30am on Sky Sports F1 and Main Event. This marks their first front-row lockout together since Hungary in 2023, following a commanding qualifying display from the Red Bull driver.
Verstappen dominated every segment of the qualifying session, setting two separate laps that would have earned pole position independently. He finished 0.298 seconds clear of Hamilton, underlining his superiority throughout the afternoon.
Third on the grid goes to Isack Hadjar, who matched his career-best qualifying result. However, the Red Bull driver will drop to eighth on the race grid due to a five-place penalty for fitting a new internal combustion engine.
Championship leader Kimi Antonelli will start from third position, though his qualifying was compromised by a costly error during Q2 that forced him to sacrifice an additional set of tyres before the final segment. This left him with just a single run in Q3, significantly limiting his opportunity to challenge for pole.
Antonelli maintains a commanding 66-point advantage over his Mercedes team-mate George Russell in the Drivers' Championship. Russell's Saturday proved frustrating, lacking pace throughout and securing only seventh on the grid.
Ferrari's Charles Leclerc will line up fourth, with McLaren's Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri completing the top six. Neither McLaren driver featured in the pole battle.
The Bahrain Grand Prix was relocated from its original April slot to Sepang following postponement amid regional circumstances, yet retains its Bahrain designation. Sepang last hosted a Formula 1 race in 2017, when Verstappen won the Malaysian Grand Prix at the venue.
The circuit measures 5.543 kilometres in length, with Sunday's race scheduled for 56 laps.
Full qualifying results
1) Max Verstappen, Red Bull
2) Lewis Hamilton, Ferrari
3) Isack Hadjar, Red Bull*
4) Kimi Antonelli, Mercedes
5) Charles Leclerc, Ferrari
6) Lando Norris, McLaren
7) George Russell, Mercedes
8) Isack Hadjar, Red Bull
9) Pierre Gasly, Alpine
10) Gabriel Bortoleto, Audi
*5-place grid penalty to be applied
Sunday's race schedule
6.30am: Grand Prix Sunday build-up coverage
8am: The Bahrain Grand Prix
10am: Chequered Flag reaction show
Watch live on Sky Sports F1 and Main Event. Stream via NOW with no contract required.
