Max Verstappen put Red Bull on pole position for the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix as McLaren's Formula One leader Lando Norris hit the wall and qualified 10th on Saturday.
McLaren's hugely impressive Oscar Piastri joined the four-times world champion on the front row for Sunday's night race.
Mercedes's George Russell and Ferrari's Charles Leclerc will share the second row in third and fourth for the Saudi Arabian race.
Championship leader Norris branded himself an "idiot" on the radio after hitting the kerbs at turns four and five and crashing into the wall during his first run in Q3.
His session was over and Verstappen, Piastri and Russell were left to slug it out for pole, with the Dutchman banishing pre-race talk over his future with another scintillating qualifying performance.
Norris has admitted not feeling "comfortable" with his McLaren and said after qualifying sixth last weekend in Bahrain that he was "clueless" how to get the best out of his car.
The British driver leads Piastri by three points in the championship standings after the Australian's victory in Bahrain last weekend, with a title tussle between the pair gaining pace.
Their McLaren had again looked the class of the field during practice in Jeddah and Norris appeared set to duel it out for pole.
But his qualifying confidence is likely to have taken a further hit after another missed opportunity.
His error came on his first attempt as he lost control on the kerbs and crashed into the wall on the left, bringing out an early red flag.
Verstappen's future has dominated the pre-race talk, with a tough weekend in Bahrain sparking speculation that he may want to find an exit from Red Bull.
The Dutchman had not looked a match for the McLarens during practice but, as he did in Japan a fortnight ago, produced a brilliant qualifying display.
Piastri had surged to the top of the charts on his final run but Verstappen was faultless with his lap at the death to take it by just 0.010 seconds.
It was another significant performance from Verstappen, even as Mercedes boss Toto Wolff had said there have been no talks between Mercedes and Verstappen.
Red Bull motorsport adviser Helmut Marko had said the "concern is great" that Verstappen might leave the team before his contract ends in 2028.
Verstappen and team principal Christian Horner have played down such talk, but links for the Dutchman with Mercedes and Aston Martin persist.
Mercedes boss Wolff, who made a public pursuit of the four-time world champion to replace Lewis Hamilton last season, says there has been no contact with Verstappen.
"I'm super happy with the line-up we have, I couldn't wish for anything better," Wolff told Sky Sports.
"Max is at Red Bull, we haven't had a conversation, we are continuing our trajectory."
Meanwhile, Hamilton's disappointing qualifying form continued as he could manage only seventh.
The seven-time world champion admitted after qualifying ninth in Bahrain that he needed to fix his Saturday form.
Excluding sprint qualifying, he has now only finished in the top five twice in 15 attempts dating back to last season with Mercedes.
Ferrari have looked way off the pace all weekend and Hamilton only squeezed through Q2 by 0.007 seconds.
He ended up over nine tenths off Verstappen's time.
Defence review at a glance
• Increase defence spending to 2.5% of GDP by 2027 but given “turbulent times it may be necessary to go faster”
• Prioritise a shift towards working with AI and autonomous systems
• Invest in the resilience of military space systems.
• Number of active reserves should be increased by 20%
• More F-35 fighter jets required in the next decade
• New “hybrid Navy” with AUKUS submarines and autonomous vessels
KILLING OF QASSEM SULEIMANI
The burning issue
The internal combustion engine is facing a watershed moment – major manufacturer Volvo is to stop producing petroleum-powered vehicles by 2021 and countries in Europe, including the UK, have vowed to ban their sale before 2040. The National takes a look at the story of one of the most successful technologies of the last 100 years and how it has impacted life in the UAE.
Read part four: an affection for classic cars lives on
Read part three: the age of the electric vehicle begins
Read part one: how cars came to the UAE
The years Ramadan fell in May
The five pillars of Islam
More on Quran memorisation:
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
PREMIER LEAGUE FIXTURES
Saturday (UAE kick-off times)
Watford v Leicester City (3.30pm)
Brighton v Arsenal (6pm)
West Ham v Wolves (8.30pm)
Bournemouth v Crystal Palace (10.45pm)
Sunday
Newcastle United v Sheffield United (5pm)
Aston Villa v Chelsea (7.15pm)
Everton v Liverpool (10pm)
Monday
Manchester City v Burnley (11pm)
Zayed Sustainability Prize
BUNDESLIGA FIXTURES
Friday (UAE kick-off times)
Borussia Dortmund v Paderborn (11.30pm)
Saturday
Bayer Leverkusen v SC Freiburg (6.30pm)
Werder Bremen v Schalke (6.30pm)
Union Berlin v Borussia Monchengladbach (6.30pm)
Eintracht Frankfurt v Wolfsburg (6.30pm)
Fortuna Dusseldof v Bayern Munich (6.30pm)
RB Leipzig v Cologne (9.30pm)
Sunday
Augsburg v Hertha Berlin (6.30pm)
Hoffenheim v Mainz (9pm)
MATCH INFO
Day 1 at Mount Maunganui
England 241-4
Denly 74, Stokes 67 not out, De Grandhomme 2-28
New Zealand
Yet to bat
Company Fact Box
Company name/date started: Abwaab Technologies / September 2019
Founders: Hamdi Tabbaa, co-founder and CEO. Hussein Alsarabi, co-founder and CTO
Based: Amman, Jordan
Sector: Education Technology
Size (employees/revenue): Total team size: 65. Full-time employees: 25. Revenue undisclosed
Stage: early-stage startup
Investors: Adam Tech Ventures, Endure Capital, Equitrust, the World Bank-backed Innovative Startups SMEs Fund, a London investment fund, a number of former and current executives from Uber and Netflix, among others.
Get Out
Director: Jordan Peele
Stars: Daniel Kaluuya, Allison Williams, Catherine Keener, Bradley Whitford
Four stars
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Disclaimer
Director: Alfonso Cuaron
Stars: Cate Blanchett, Kevin Kline, Lesley Manville
Rating: 4/5
Dubai Bling season three
Cast: Loujain Adada, Zeina Khoury, Farhana Bodi, Ebraheem Al Samadi, Mona Kattan, and couples Safa & Fahad Siddiqui and DJ Bliss & Danya Mohammed
Rating: 1/5
Sholto Byrnes on Myanmar politics
UPI facts
More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions
More from Rashmee Roshan Lall
Most sought after workplace benefits in the UAE
- Flexible work arrangements
- Pension support
- Mental well-being assistance
- Insurance coverage for optical, dental, alternative medicine, cancer screening
- Financial well-being incentives
Jetour T1 specs
Engine: 2-litre turbocharged
Power: 254hp
Torque: 390Nm
Price: From Dh126,000
Available: Now
MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE – FINAL RECKONING
Director: Christopher McQuarrie
Starring: Tom Cruise, Hayley Atwell, Simon Pegg
Rating: 4/5
match info
Chelsea 2
Willian (13'), Ross Barkley (64')
Liverpool 0
Getting there
Flydubai flies direct from Dubai to Tbilisi from Dh1,025 return including taxes
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