Max Verstappen was relieved he did not require a final run to seal pole position at the United States Grand Prix, as the Dutchman built on his impressive sprint win in Austin.

The world champion finished 0.291 seconds ahead of Lando Norris as he continues a late charge for a fifth consecutive Drivers' Championship title, with his chances helped here.

That is because the McLaren of Oscar Piastri, who is 55 points ahead of Verstappen at the top of the standings, could only manage a sixth-placed start for Sunday's race.

Neither McLaren driver looked fully comfortable after the team was forced to make repairs to both cars following a multi-car incident in the sprint earlier on Saturday, during which they collided with each other.

But as the third qualifying session came to a close, Verstappen was unable to get to the line in time to start a final flying lap, though it did not matter as he sealed pole in style.

"It was good. I think in every segment, the car was strong – trying to put the lap together around here sometimes can be quite tricky," he said. 

"Also, it's very hot, and a very strong wind as well in that first sector. Having a tailwind is challenging, let's say.

"The first run in Q3 was good; we just managed to improve a little bit from Q2. Unfortunately, I couldn't do my final run – it was a bit messy with the outlaps.

"Luckily, we didn't need it. But again, for us, a very strong result. The wind picked up today compared to yesterday, and it managed to turn a little bit as well. Like a full-on tailwind into the essence.

"With that, you just lose downforce and the car is moving around a lot more – even compared to yesterday, so that made it a bit harder.

"At some corners, you gain a bit of lap time back, but of course, you can't commit as much as you normally can in sector one."

Leading the field to green on Sunday #F1 || #USGP pic.twitter.com/8UB8gqYzIz

— Oracle Red Bull Racing (@redbullracing) October 18, 2025

Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc was able to come home in third, and he will line on the second row alongside George Russell, who won the Singapore Grand Prix last weekend.

Piastri finished in between Lewis Hamilton and Kimi Antonelli, while Haas' Ollie Bearman, Williams' Carlos Sainz and Aston Martin's Fernando Alonso rounded out the top 10.

Red Bull's Yuki Tsunoda failed to reach Q3 in 13th, while Racing Bulls' Isack Hadjar had a massive crash early in the first qualifying session, and will start from the back.

Qualifying Top 10:

1. Max Verstappen (Red Bull)

2. Lando Norris (McLaren)

3. Charles Leclerc (Ferrari)

4. George Russell (Mercedes)

5. Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari)

6. Oscar Piastri (McLaren)

7. Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes)

8. Oliver Bearman (Haas)

9. Carlos Sainz (Williams)

10. Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin)