**Verstappen Loses Pole Position to Russell After Qatar GP Qualifying Incident**

Max Verstappen has been hit with a one-place grid penalty by the stewards following a qualifying incident at the Qatar Grand Prix, causing him to lose his pole position start. This decision comes after a clash with Mercedes driver George Russell during the final part of qualifying, which resulted in Verstappen's penalty.

The Dutch driver had secured his first pole position since the Austrian Grand Prix with an impressive lap time. However, the stewards found fault in his slow driving ahead of Russell on a slow lap while preparing for his final attempt in Q3. As Russell closed in, he had to quickly navigate through the gravel to avoid a collision, an event he later theorized might have impacted his lap performance.

Russell expressed his frustration, explaining, "I ended up going through the gravel all over the floor, so it felt like the floor was scraping over that kerb and through the gravel, so I hope it didn't damage it. Maybe that's the reason we didn't improve - I don't know, but it was a bit of a hairy one, two corners before we started the lap."

Verstappen was summoned to the stewards along with Russell following the qualifying session. Red Bull Team Principal Christian Horner defended Verstappen's actions by noting that many drivers were jockeying for position during their outlaps. Despite the defense, the stewards handed down a penalty after reviewing data, telemetry, team radio, and onboard footage.

The FIA document released by the stewards explained the complexity of the situation. Russell had argued that slow-moving cars should not be on the racing line in high-speed corners. The stewards acknowledged the intricacies of the case but decided that a typical three-place grid penalty was not warranted because neither driver was on a push lap at the time.

The document concluded, "Car 1 did not comply with the Race Director's Event Notes and clearly was driving, in our determination, unnecessarily slowly considering the circumstances. It was obvious the driver of Car 1 was attempting to cool his tyres. He also could see Car 63 approaching as he looked in his mirror multiple times whilst on the small straight between Turns 11 and 12."

As a result, Verstappen will now start the Qatar Grand Prix from second place on the grid, handing the pole position advantage to George Russell for the 57-lap race ahead.