Russell on pole as Gasly stars for Alpine in Las Vegas GP qualifying

Russell will be joined on the front row by Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz, with Gasly a surprise third ahead of Charles Leclerc.

Alpine had been rapid in practice but had flown under the radar before a stunning performance in qualifying.

Oscar Piastri will start the race eighth, while his McLaren telam-mate will line up sixth, one place back from title rival Max Verstappen.

It was a busy start to the session, teams looking to bank laps on a slippery circuit or – in George Russell’s case – scrub a set of medium tyres early on.

The early laps were not indicative and it was only with 11 minutes remaining that meaningful times were recorded.

That saw Oscar Piastri move to the top of the timesheets with a 1:34.058s, a time 0.03s better than his team-mate.

Then came the Mercedes duo, though they were split by Yuki Tsunoda and Fernando Alonso soon after, suggesting there was plenty of track evolution still occurring.

Charles Leclerc was rapid with his first push lap, though it was quickly beaten by both McLarens, Piastri going fastest once again with a 1:33.450s.

Then it was Russell’s turn to go fastest, just under a tenth faster than Piastri’s best.

Leclerc demoted the Australian to third by just 0.004s, the top three split by less than a tenth.

Inside the final three minutes, McLaren sent both Piastri and Norris out once more.

Sergio Perez was again in trouble, languishing in 18th inside the final minute of the session.

He improved to 12th, though with others improving, he remained in danger of elimination.

So it played out, Perez falling to 16th where he was eliminated alongside Alonso, Alex Albon, Valtteri Bottas, and Lance Stroll.

With a five-place grid penalty, Bottas will fall to last on the grid for Saturday’s race.

Verstappen was first on track as Qualifying 2 began while McLaren kept both Piastri and Norris in the garage to offset the duo from the bulk of the pack.

The initial laps saw Hamilton fastest from Piastri, Verstappen, Norris and Nico Hulkenberg.

Ferrari also offset its pair, Leclerc and Sainz starting their first timed laps as everyone else cycled back into the lane.

An early mistake from Sainz saw the Spaniard abandon his lap while Verstappen was improving on his, going fastest with a 1:33.085s.

It didn’t last long as both Mercedes drivers quickly bettered it, Russell ahead of Hamilton.

While most went for a second run, Verstappen did not, the only one of the 15 remaining drivers not to head out for a final flyer as the chequered flag waved.

It was a well-judged gamble, the Dutchman progressing in seventh.

The segment ended with Franco Colapinto in the wall exiting Turn 16.

The Argentinian clipped the apex wall on the left-hander which fired him across the road heavily to end his session.

He sat 14th at the time, ahead of Lawson, but behind Esteban Ocon, Kevin Magnussen, and Zhou Guanyu, the quintet missing the cut.

Hamilton topped the segment from Sainz, with Russell third and Gasly a surprise fourth.

Verstappen headed the pack back out as Qualifying 3 began, the Dutchman opting for two build laps while second on the road Piastri was immediately on it.

That resulted in a 1:33.520s for the Melburnian, a time soon bettered by Norris with a 1:33.237s.

That fell to Sainz first and then Russell, the Mercedes driver logging a 1:32.811s.

After his two build laps, Verstappen was only third best and 0.4s away from provisional pole, but ahead of title rival Norris.

Having failed to fire on his initial lap, Leclerc sat just eighth as he headed back out with four minutes remaining.

A brush with the wall on his first run cost Russell time in the garage as Mercedes checked over his car, leaving only time for a final flying lap before the chequered flag.

With 90s remaining, Piastri began his final lap.

Fifth at the time, he was 0.2s down at the first sector, improving to third by the end of the lap, but others were going faster. The saw him shuffled down to eighth in the final wash-up.

In the dying moments, Leclerc moved onto provisional pole, only to be bumped by team-mate Sainz.

Russell denied them all with the final lap of the session banking a 1:32.312s, just under a tenth quicker than anyone else.

Gasly was a sensational third for Alpine while Verstappen will start fifth, one place ahead of Norris.

Then came Tsunoda, Piastri, Hulkenberg, and Hamilton.

With questions over Mercedes’ race pace, the title rivals together on the grid, and the Gasly wildcard on the second row, it promises an enthralling grand prix.

The Las Vegas Grand Prix begins at 17:00 AEDT on Sunday.