Former F1 driver Heikki Kovalainen has praised Max Verstappen for his "mind-blowing" lap which secured pole position for the Japanese Grand Prix, one he ranked amongst the "all-time" best. Verstappen stunned McLaren to deny Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri pole position at Suzuka after setting a new lap record of the circuit. The four-time world champion went on to convert his pole position into victory, reducing Norris' lead in the F1 drivers' title fight to just a point over the Dutchman. Due to overtaking having been difficult and Verstappen having been able to match the McLarens pace, the race was, ultimately, won in qualifying. Verstappen was on the absolute limit during his pole position lap, with Kovalainen having been certain the Red Bull driver was set to miss a corner. Somehow, the 27-year-old made every apex, with Lewis Hamilton's former team-mate believing it is one of the greatest pole position laps in the history of the sport. "That was right up there with one of the all-time qualifying laps," Kovalainen told the F1 Nation Podcast . "It was right on the limit. I watched it a few times on replay, and it's just the mind-blowing. "It looks in a few places that he's not going to make the corner, especially I think it's Turn 13, the entry to the spoon corner. "It looks like he can't make the corner when he's entering the corner, but he just makes it and still has a clean exit. And then arriving to the last chicane, again it looks like he cannot hook to the kerb on the right on the corner entry. "So it looks like he's going to miss the corner, or he's going to lock the wheel. And he didn't, and he managed to change the direction. He arrived very fast into the corner, but yet managed to change the direction to the left, sharp as well. It was just incredible to watch."
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