At Monza, Max Verstappen will start on pole ahead of the McLarens

Max Verstappen, the reigning four-time Formula 1 world champion, will start Sunday from pole position for the Italian Grand Prix, the 16th of 24 rounds this season, ahead of the two usually dominant McLarens.

In the Italian cauldron of Monza, which is inevitably won over to the Ferrari cause, the Red Bull driver beat the Briton Lando Norris, second overall, by 0''077 on Saturday during qualifying.

"We made some final changes that allowed me to have a little more performance," explained the Dutchman, who took his fifth pole of the season – for only two GP wins this year (in Japan and Emilia-Romagna).

Behind, the other McLaren, that of championship leader Oscar Piastri, will start from the second row alongside the Ferrari of Charles Leclerc, winner last year at Monza.

For his first Italian GP in red, seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton set the fifth fastest time in qualifying.

The Briton will only start 10th on Sunday, however, after receiving a five-place penalty for exceeding the speed limit under yellow flags during the Dutch GP last weekend.

With this penalty, the two Mercedes of the Englishman George Russell and the Italian Andrea Kimi Antonelli move up one place and will start from the third row.

Racing Bulls' Isack Hadjar, who scored his first F1 podium last week , finished 16th. This was his worst qualifying result since joining the premier class at the start of the year.

Additionally, the Frenchman suffered problems with his car before qualifying and is expected to receive a grid penalty. No decision has yet been announced.

His compatriots Esteban Ocon (Haas) and Pierre Gasly, who extended his contract with Alpine until 2028 on Saturday, qualified 15th and 19th respectively.

For the Swiss Kick-Sauber team, the return to Q3 of Brazilian Gabriel Bortoleto (8th) is a welcome achievement. His teammate, German Nico Hülkenberg, will start from 12th place.

At home, Ferrari will try to turn the page on Sunday after a nightmarish Dutch Grand Prix, which saw its two drivers retire.

This double retirement is a blow to the Italian team, second in the constructors' championship, which has lost ground overall to Mercedes, third. Only 12 points now separate the two teams.

In the drivers' championship, Piastri has a 34-point lead over Norris. The best of the rest, Max Verstappen, is already 104 points behind leader Piastri.