Brazilian F1 Grand Prix 2019 Qualifying: Saturday's Results, Times, Final Grid

Max Verstappen secured pole position for the 2019 Brazilian Formula One Grand Prix after finishing fastest in qualifying on Saturday.

Lewis Hamilton had gone quickest in the third and final practice session earlier in the day, but neither he nor Ferrari ace Sebastian Vettel were able to match Verstappen's times in qualifying at Interlagos in Sao Paulo.

Q1

Max Verstappen set the pace during the opening phase of the first session, with Ferrari appearing to be keeping something in reserve.

Vettel clocked a first lap of one minute and 8.556 seconds, slightly quicker than team-mate Charles Leclerc. Ferrari were offering hints of their speed, but things weren't going as well for McLaren, who could't get Carlos Sainz out of the garage and onto the track.

Eventually, Sainz had to withdraw from the session without putting a time on the board.

Toro Rosso's Daniil Kvyat was among those joining Sainz in making an early exit. Meanwhile, Sergio Perez managed to make it through at Kvyat's expense, but only by 0.032 seconds.

Verstappen had made an early statement, along with Ferrari, who placed both of their drivers in the five fastest, sandwiched around Mercedes' Valtteri Bottas, with his Silver Arrows team-mate Hamilton the sixth-quickest.

Q2

Hamilton knew he had to make a statement after Q1, and he promptly made a swift start to the second session.

Verstappen had already proved his speed, though, and he was soon setting the pace again. He also had a familiar rival for company, with Leclerc continuing to come close to matching Red Bull's rising star.

It was a different story for Vertsappen's former team-mate Daniel Ricciardo. The Renault man was the biggest name among those who dropped out at the end of Q2, with the team's misery completed by Nico Hulkenberg also failing to make the grade.

Q3

Hamilton went round in one minute and 7.623 seconds, but Verstappen once again topped him after positing a time a mere 0.008 seconds quicker than Vettel.

Red Bull and Ferrari's early speed was no mirage, and Mercedes had yet to heed the warning. Verstappen had provisional pole to himself and went a tenth of a second quicker on his final lap, but he was left sweating over whether he had been quick enough to keep pole away from Vettel.

Ultimately, Verstappen had done enough, and the 22-year-old expressed his delight with the way the car had performed.

By contrast, Hamilton remained wary about the Autodromo Jose Carlos Pace:

Hamilton and Mercedes know the scale of the task facing them against two rival teams who both appear quicker and stronger in Sao Paulo ahead of Sunday's race.