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Verstappen roars to Imola pole as exclusive Bottas news revealed - RacingNews365 Review

Check out the biggest stories from Saturday 18th May - qualifying day for the 2024 Emilia Romagna Grand Prix - with the RacingNews365 Review!

Verstappen roars to Imola pole

You'd have got long odds on a Max Verstappen pole at Imola after Friday practice, but the world champion put in one of the best laps of his career to earn a 39th career pole.  Even more poignantly, he equalled Ayrton Senna's record of eight straight poles, as Imola marks 30 years since the Brazilian's death. For good measure, he also equalled Alain Prost's tally of seven straight poles to start a season.  The full qualifying report is available below! READ MORE: Verstappen bounces back to match all-time Senna record with Imola pole

Piastri stripped of front-row

Oscar Piastri did qualify second on the road at Imola, less than a tenth behind Verstappen, but he won't be starting there.  That is down to a Q1 incident involving Kevin Magnussen at Tamburello, which saw the Australian hit with a three-place grid drop.  READ MORE: Piastri stripped of Imola front-row by stewards after investigation

Hamilton's Mercedes surprise

As Lewis Hamilton prepares to leave Mercedes, he will be phased out of team technical meetings and upgrade direction over the next few months.  Despite this, the seven-time champion is still pushing on as ever to help steer direction of the 2025 machine he will never drive. READ MORE : Hamilton reveals Mercedes development surprise: 'Maybe I shouldn't be doing that'

Bottas exclusive

Valtteri Bottas is defiant that he will be on the 2025 F1 grid, although it is increasingly clear that it will not be at Stake. He claims he has options to remain on the grand prix grid, with RacingNews365's Ian Parkes having some exclusive news on the two teams that are on the Finn's radar for next season... EXCLUSIVE: Bottas in advanced talks to secure F1 future

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RESULTS 2026 F1 Bahrain Pre-Season 1st Test - Day 3