Verstappen takes his first pole position of the year at F1's Bahrain Grand Prix in Malaysia

SEPANG, Malaysia (AP) — Max Verstappen qualified on pole position for the first time this year at the Bahrain Grand Prix in Malaysia on a rare off day for Mercedes and Formula 1 standings leader Kimi Antonelli.

Verstappen went fastest by 0.298 of a second from Ferrari's Lewis Hamilton, with Verstappen's Red Bull teammate Isack Hadjar .130 further back in third.

That's a big step toward Verstappen achieving his target of avoiding a first winless season since his 2015 rookie year.

Verstappen's pole ends run for Mercedes-powered cars

It was an “incredible result for us looking at the season,” Verstappen said. “I felt good, felt confident and I hope we can show that again tomorrow.”

Verstappen won the last time F1 raced at the Sepang circuit back in 2017. His pole position is the first this year for a car powered by a non-Mercedes engine after Mercedes, McLaren and Alpine — all with Mercedes power — topped every qualifying session until now.

Antonelli qualified only fourth, with his Mercedes teammate and closest title challenger George Russell only eighth. Both are set to move up a place on the grid for Sunday's race because Hadjar has a five-place grid penalty for changing his engine over the allocation for the season.

Hamilton's second place came as a relief to the seven-time champion amid a slump in results at Ferrari, which has denied speculation over team principal Fred Vasseur's future.

“Let’s go guys, let’s go. Finally,” Hamilton said over the radio.

Russell blames tire trouble for Mercedes' lack of pace

Qualifying so low is another blow to Russell's chances of cutting into Antonelli's 66-point lead, and tire troubles played a role.

The Sepang circuit has an abrasive surface that chews up tires and causes them to overheat. That made it even more challenging than usual to pick the right setup to get the best out of the car in qualifying without compromising pace for Sunday's race.

“It’s a very demanding circuit on the tires, the tarmac is all broke up, it’s extremely rough, it’s so hot out there and the tires are going through hell," Russell told broadcaster Sky Sports. "For whatever reason, it seems to be affecting us far more than others.”

Once again, the weather in Malaysia stayed dry for Saturday's sessions despite predictions of heavy rain earlier in the week.

F1 is racing at Malaysia's Sepang circuit for the first time since 2017. It's a replacement event after the races in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia were called off earlier this year due to the Iran war. The race keeps Bahrain Grand Prix branding and Bahraini staff are organizing it on site.

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