Christian Horner has praised Max Verstappen for putting in a fast lap "at the critical moment" as he pipped Charles Leclerc to pole position at the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix. Verstappen will start Saturday's Sprint at the front of the pack, just ahead of Leclerc after a qualifying session staged in changing weather conditions. "He did a superb job. I mean, it was an unusual qualifying, and the one lap that turned out to have counted was, thankfully, the one lap that we banked," said Horner, speaking to Sky Sports F1 . "It looked like, maybe even at the end there, the circuit might go quick again, but there was just too much rain for anybody to respond, and then another red flag."
Horner encouraged by Red Bull's pace
The result has offered encouragement to Red Bull which, after FP1, looked as though they could find themselves behind Ferrari all weekend. "The Ferrari looks better at getting the heat in the tyre. We were struggling to generate the temperature, it was taking more and more laps," Horner continued. "I think we've managed to find a good balance and Max has nailed a lap at the critical moment. Now the challenge will be whatever the weather is going to do tomorrow. "It's a shame for Checo (Sergio Perez), because I think he would have been up there as well today with a clean lap, but he had a big lock-up. That's encouraging for tomorrow."
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