Lando Norris secured a controversial pole for the sprint race at the Chinese Grand Prix after his lap time was reinstated. Lewis Hamilton and Fernando Alonso are behind the Brit after Verstappen went off track twice in a rain-affected final session.

Lando Norris secured an incredible pole in an exciting sprint qualifying for the Chinese Grand Prix.

It started to rain at the Shanghai International circuit almost immediately, with Lando Norris reporting at the start of SQ1 that it was "Starting to spit." A rush ensued, as all the drivers scrambled to get out for a lap in the cold, cloudy conditions. The rain held back for the rest of SQ1, and Sergio Perez topped the timesheets with a 1:36.110. Zhou Guyanu was able to get himself into SQ2 in front of his adoring home fans, pipping Gasly, Ocon, Albon, Tsunoda and Sargeant, who were eliminated in SQ1. As the session was ending, the bizarre grass fire on the track, which started in FP1, began again, delaying SQ2 by a few minutes. 

The drivers sat at the end of the pitlane for an agonising few minutes waiting for SQ2 to start. As the drivers lost tyre temperature, it was estimated that conditions would continue to get worse, as the remaining 15 attempted to set competitive lap times in a crucial few minutes. The heavens finally opened with a minute to go in the session, robbing George Russell of the chance to get out of SQ2. He was eliminated in P11, alongside Magnussen, Hulkenberg, Ricciardo and Stroll. Guanyu Zhou was spurred on by his home crowd, who made an incredible noise as he crossed the line to get into SQ3 successfully.

A chaotic final session

The conditions worsened for the final session of the day, as the remaining drivers left the pitlane on the intermediate tyres. Immediately, Charles Leclerc spun 720 degrees, somehow escaping without damage. Shortly after, on Max Verstappen's first flying lap, he went off, alongside Zhou Guanyu, who also struggled in the conditions. The Dutchman continued to struggle, going off for the second time, at the final corner. Chaos continued, as Alonso and Hamilton held provisional pole, not before Lando Norris set a 1:57.940, which was reinstated after originally being deleted for track limits. Verstappen will start the sprint from fourth place.