MONZA, Italy (AP) — Carlos Sainz Jr. was enjoying a perfect birthday weekend so far after he secured pole position for the Italian Grand Prix to the delight of the Ferrari tifosi on Saturday.
Thousands of red-clad Ferrari fans cheered as Sainz, who turned 29 on Friday, crossed the line 0.013 seconds quicker than runaway Formula One leader Max Verstappen, who is chasing a record 10th straight victory on Sunday.
“Tell me we have it, tell me we have it,” Sainz yelled into race radio after beating Verstappen’s time on his final flying lap.
The roars from the grandstands should have confirmed it.
It was his fourth career pole and first since Austin last year. He was quickest in two of the three practices and Ferrari looked good on its home track. Teammate Charles Leclerc will start third on Sunday, just ahead of George Russell in the Mercedes.
Grid positions aren’t necessarily as much of a factor at Monza as they are at other tracks. Only Leclerc has converted his pole position into a Sunday win at the Italian GP since 2018.
Verstappen won from seventh last year for his first triumph at the Temple of Speed, where he has traditionally struggled. Before he ended his winless run at Monza last year, the Dutch driver had never finished higher than fifth.
But the two-time defending champion is crushingly dominant this season.
Verstappen has won 11 of the 13 races for unbeaten Red Bull and matched Sebastian Vettel’s F1 record of nine straight victories last weekend at the Dutch GP to increase his huge championship lead to 138 points. Teammate Sergio Pérez has the other two victories.
Pérez will start from fifth at Monza, followed by Alex Albon and Oscar Piastri. Lewis Hamilton — who extended his contract with Mercedes on Thursday — was eighth fastest, ahead of Lando Norris and Fernando Alonso.
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