Verstappen wins sprint battle: "Will be a very exciting battle tomorrow"

"We had a good start and it was a good battle with Lewis on the first lap. We tried to drive our own pace, but you can see we were pushing each other hard because the degradation was quite high. We had to manage that until the end," Verstappen told Jenson Button in an initial reaction.

"Nevertheless, we scored three extra points for the World Championship. It sounds weird that I have now won the pole position, but I am happy with it of course, " said the 23-year-old Limburger, who expects a lot from Mercedes on Sunday. "It's going to be a very exciting battle tomorrow. We're not allowed to touch the car anymore either."

What did Verstappen think of the sprint race? "It's difficult for the tyres because we push very hard right away because we're driving with less fuel. But everyone suffers from that problem," he explained.

Verstappen ran a point out of rival Hamilton in the world championship. The winner of the sprint race receives three World Championship points. The number two receives two points and Bottas can add one point to his total.