Even a change in rules could not stop Max Verstappen as the Red Bull driver and world championship leader won Formula One's first-ever sprint race on Saturday to take pole position for the British Grand Prix.
Verstappen finished the 100km dash ahead of defending champion Lewis Hamilton, while Valtteri Bottas in the other Mercedes came in third.
The Red Bull star went into the weekend with a 32-point lead over seven-time champion Hamilton who is hoping for an eighth British Grand Prix triumph on Sunday, but is looking increasingly uncertain due of lack of power in his car compared to the championship leader.
At the end of the first lap, Verstappen was more than one second clear of Hamilton. Soon the Dutchman doubled the gap with Hamilton running out of laps. "I am giving everything. Have we got any more power?" Hamilton yelled over the radio.
On the other hand, it was yet another near-flawless outing for Red Bull and Verstappen.
"Around here it is difficult to pass but I made a good start and had a good fight with Lewis on the first lap," said Verstappen.
"We pushed each other hard and we had to manage the tyres to the end. I am happy to get the three points and it is funny to hear I am on pole but I will take it and I am looking forward to tomorrow's race."
Hamilton started the 17-lap sprint at the front of the grid having topped qualifying on Friday but was passed by Verstappen. He admitted he will face a battle to secure a 99th career win.
"First of all, let me say thank you to the fans, their energy is amazing," he said.
"I gave it everything today, I'm just sorry I couldn't win it for them. Tomorrow we will fight again, but Red Bull are just so strong."
He added: "Verstappen was pulling away and there was nothing I could do to hold on to him. Their starts have been great this year and we've lost a bit on our starts and losing position is never a good thing - I wish we could do the start again."
Mercedes teammate Bottas shared Hamilton's lack of optimism for race day.
"We tried to do something different and the target was to try and get Verstappen in the first lap. It didn't happen," said the Finn.
"Today shows that tomorrow is not going to be easy. If it's going to be a bit warmer, then we might see more issues.
The rest of the top 10 was made up of Charles Leclerc in a Ferrari in fourth, Britain's Lando Norris, in a McLaren, in fifth, and teammate Daniel Ricciardo just behind.
Fernando Alonso, behind the wheel of an Alpine, shrugged off his 39 years to climb to seventh on the grid.
Behind him are four-time world champion Sebastian Vettel in the Aston Martin, Williams' George Russell and Esteban Ocon in the second Alpine.
The big casualty of the new format was Verstappen's team mate Sergio Perez, who spun off across the gravel on lap six and was then told by the team to retire the car before the finish.
Saturday's sprint qualifying race was the first of three planned for this year. Another will follow at the Italian Grand Prix in September with the third venue still to be confirmed. It was a special day for F1 fans as more than 100,000 spectators arrived at Silverstone for the historic race.
The pole was a fourth in a row for Verstappen, who will be chasing his sixth win of the season and fourth in succession on Sunday.
The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4-cyl turbo
Power: 201hp at 5,200rpm
Torque: 320Nm at 1,750-4,000rpm
Transmission: 6-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 8.7L/100km
Price: Dh133,900
On sale: now
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UEFA CHAMPIONS LEAGUE FIXTURES
All kick-off times 10.45pm UAE ( 4 GMT) unless stated
Tuesday
Sevilla v Maribor
Spartak Moscow v Liverpool
Manchester City v Shakhtar Donetsk
Napoli v Feyenoord
Besiktas v RB Leipzig
Monaco v Porto
Apoel Nicosia v Tottenham Hotspur
Borussia Dortmund v Real Madrid
Wednesday
Basel v Benfica
CSKA Moscow Manchester United
Paris Saint-Germain v Bayern Munich
Anderlecht v Celtic
Qarabag v Roma (8pm)
Atletico Madrid v Chelsea
Juventus v Olympiakos
Sporting Lisbon v Barcelona
Bournemouth 0
Manchester United 2
Smalling (28'), Lukaku (70')
Gothia Cup 2025
4,872 matches
1,942 teams
116 pitches
76 nations
26 UAE teams
15 Lebanese teams
2 Kuwaiti teams
The specs: 2018 Opel Mokka X
Price, as tested: Dh84,000
Engine: 1.4L, four-cylinder turbo
Transmission: Six-speed auto
Power: 142hp at 4,900rpm
Torque: 200Nm at 1,850rpm
Fuel economy, combined: 6.5L / 100km
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Have you been targeted?
Tuan Phan of SimplyFI.org lists five signs you have been mis-sold to:
1. Your pension fund has been placed inside an offshore insurance wrapper with a hefty upfront commission.
2. The money has been transferred into a structured note. These products have high upfront, recurring commission and should never be in a pension account.
3. You have also been sold investment funds with an upfront initial charge of around 5 per cent. ETFs, for example, have no upfront charges.
4. The adviser charges a 1 per cent charge for managing your assets. They are being paid for doing nothing. They have already claimed massive amounts in hidden upfront commission.
5. Total annual management cost for your pension account is 2 per cent or more, including platform, underlying fund and advice charges.
How to join and use Abu Dhabi’s public libraries
• There are six libraries in Abu Dhabi emirate run by the Department of Culture and Tourism, including one in Al Ain and Al Dhafra.
• Libraries are free to visit and visitors can consult books, use online resources and study there. Most are open from 8am to 8pm on weekdays, closed on Fridays and have variable hours on Saturdays, except for Qasr Al Watan which is open from 10am to 8pm every day.
• In order to borrow books, visitors must join the service by providing a passport photograph, Emirates ID and a refundable deposit of Dh400. Members can borrow five books for three weeks, all of which are renewable up to two times online.
• If users do not wish to pay the fee, they can still use the library’s electronic resources for free by simply registering on the website. Once registered, a username and password is provided, allowing remote access.
• For more information visit the library network's website.
Sole survivors
- Cecelia Crocker was on board Northwest Airlines Flight 255 in 1987 when it crashed in Detroit, killing 154 people, including her parents and brother. The plane had hit a light pole on take off
- George Lamson Jr, from Minnesota, was on a Galaxy Airlines flight that crashed in Reno in 1985, killing 68 people. His entire seat was launched out of the plane
- Bahia Bakari, then 12, survived when a Yemenia Airways flight crashed near the Comoros in 2009, killing 152. She was found clinging to wreckage after floating in the ocean for 13 hours.
- Jim Polehinke was the co-pilot and sole survivor of a 2006 Comair flight that crashed in Lexington, Kentucky, killing 49.
Our legal columnist
Name: Yousef Al Bahar
Advocate at Al Bahar & Associate Advocates and Legal Consultants, established in 1994
Education: Mr Al Bahar was born in 1979 and graduated in 2008 from the Judicial Institute. He took after his father, who was one of the first Emirati lawyers
Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
- Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
- Flexible payment plans from developers
- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
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UAE v Ireland
1st ODI, UAE win by 6 wickets
2nd ODI, January 12
3rd ODI, January 14
4th ODI, January 16
2.0
Director: S Shankar
Producer: Lyca Productions; presented by Dharma Films
Cast: Rajnikanth, Akshay Kumar, Amy Jackson, Sudhanshu Pandey
Rating: 3.5/5 stars
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Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
The specs: 2018 Volkswagen Teramont
Price, base / as tested Dh137,000 / Dh189,950
Engine 3.6-litre V6
Gearbox Eight-speed automatic
Power 280hp @ 6,200rpm
Torque 360Nm @ 2,750rpm
Fuel economy, combined 11.7L / 100km
