Verstappen tops qualifying, Sainz inherits pole

The defending champion elected not to take part in the final shootout in Q3, knowing he will start from the back of the grid owing to a drop for exceeding his permitted parts count.

Nevertheless, his banker lap was so emphatic that he topped the session by six tenths of a second as a sloppy Sainz final flying lap meant the Spaniard failed to improve at the death.

Sergio Perez will join the Ferrari on the front row of the grid, while Leclerc will meet Verstappen as…