The Red Bull Racing driver was four-tenths clear of the pack, with Lando Norris his nearest challenger.

Oscar Piastri had his best lap deleted for track limits, a 1:04.786s that dropped him from third to seventh, promoting George Russell in his place.

Daniel Ricciardo meanwhile will start 11th after he missed out on a Qualifying 3 berth by 0.015s.

Qualifying 1 started with a flurry with 18 of the 20 drivers heading out almost immediately.

Mercedes kept Russell and Lewis Hamilton in the garage as Charles Leclerc went fastest with a 1:05.901s.

He headed a tight group of drivers, with Lando Norris, Oscar Piastri, Yuki Tsunoda, and Carlos Sainz all within 0.04s of his time – most on scrubbed rubber though Tsunoda was on a new set of boots.

Mercedes ran its drivers slightly off sequence, Hamilton logging the seventh fastest time as Russell went fastest, the new benchmark a 1:05.614s.

That all but matched what Verstappen had recorded to top the first segment of Sprint Qualifying on Friday afternoon, though on a set of medium tyres in that session.

A set of new soft tyres saw Carlos Sainz shoot to the top of the timesheets, a 1:05.263s that flattered the Ferrari more than highlighted its potential strength.

In fourth, Norris was told he needed another run inside the final five minutes.

He’d recorded a 1:05.450s, the Qualifying 1 elimination time expected to be around a 1:05.800s.

Hamilton was in the drop zone, sitting 16th with a time 0.02s away from safety.

He benefitted from a brief slipstream from Alex Albon on his final flying lap, completing the lap in 1:05.541s to sit sixth.

Ricciardo slotted in eighth as he flashed across the line on his final timed lap, beaten by 0.006s by team-mate Yuki Tsunoda.

Missing the cut were Albon, Lance Stroll, Valtteri Bottas, Logan Sargeant, and Zhou Guanyu.

The early moments of Qualifying 2 saw drivers set a banker lap, Leclerc setting the pace with a 1:05.532s.

The real action began with 10 minutes remaining as drivers headed out on a new tyres.

That saw Verstappen move to the top of the timesheets with a 1:04.577s a time almost a second faster than what Leclerc had managed just a couple of minutes prior.

Nobody could get near it, the Dutchman almost half a second clear of the pack, which was headed by Sainz on a 1:05.016s.

Ahead of the final Qualifying 2 runs, Ricciardo sat 10th with a 1:05.334s.

Nico Hulkenberg bumped him to 11th, the Australian unable to respond to end his session at the second hurdle by 0.015s.

Joining him on the sidelines were Pierre Gasly, Kevin Magnussen, Yuki Tsunoda, and Alonso.

Verstappen meanwhile lowered the benchmark time to 1:04.469s to extend his advantage over the pack.

As Qualifying 3 began, Verstappen reclaimed his spot atop the timesheets with a 1:04.426s, marginally better than he’d managed in Qualifying 2.

The pack had closed slightly, Norris second with a 1:04.787s.

After the initial laps, Piastri sat fifth for McLaren with a 1:05.048s, a time 0.022s faster than his Q2 effort.

The field emerged for their final laps with just under three minutes, headed by Verstappen.

The championship leader logged a 1:04.314s, an untouchable time that confirmed him on pole.

Norris got closest with a 1:04.718s to take second, with Piastri third just 0.068s away from his McLaren team-mate.

Moments later, Piastri had his best lap scrapped for track limits at Turn 6, relegating him to seventh.

It promoted Russell to third from Sainz, Hamilton, and Leclerc. Behind Piastri was Perez, Hulkenberg, and Ocon rounded out the top 10.