World champion Max Verstappen put Red Bull on pole position for the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix in dramatic style on Saturday.
Formula One's new energy rules face criticism after the Japanese GP, with drivers questioning racing quality and safety ahead of a five-week break.
The two McLaren drivers were ruled out for excessive skid plank wear hours after the race had ended and the podium champagne been sprayed.
The final phase of qualifying was halted, with only Piastri and Haas' Nico Hulkenberg having set times, when Sainz slammed backwards into the barriers at the final corner as he prepared to start his flying lap.
Norris's teammate Oscar Piastri, who spun off and finished ninth in his home race last Sunday after starting on the front row and challenging for the lead, has another good chance to rev up his season.
World champion Max Verstappen took pole position for the Japanese Grand Prix on Saturday, stunning the McLarens with a late flying lap.
Formula One could take another twist in Austria this weekend after Lewis Hamilton ended Mercedes' dominant run with his breakthrough first win for Ferrari in Spain.
Lando Norris capitalised on a bit of good fortune to win the Miami Grand Prix on Sunday
McLaren's Lando Norris took pole position for the Qatar Grand Prix sprint on Friday with Mercedes' George Russell denying the Formula One leaders a front row.
The win from fourth on the grid was Australian Oscar Piastri's third in a row, after Bahrain and Saudi Arabia, and fourth of the season. McLaren have so far been beaten only once.
Lando Norris roared to his second successive pole position, and third in four races, in a McLaren front row sweep with team mate Oscar Piastri
Four times World champion Max Verstappen said he had nothing to lose and would go all out to win.
F1 champion Max Verstappen revelled in McLaren's strategy horror show at the Qatar Grand Prix on Sunday.
Charles Leclerc won the US Grand Prix in a Ferrari one-two with Carlos Sainz on Sunday as Formula One championship leader Max Verstappen dealt Lando Norris a significant setback in their title battle.
Oscar Piastri won the Dutch Grand Prix to take a mighty 34 point lead in the Formula One championship on Sunday as McLaren teammate and title rival Lando Norris saw his hopes go up in smoke.
George Russell seized pole position for a race that could snap teammate Kimi Antonelli's winning streak while Ferrari's Lewis Hamilton split the Mercedes pair in Barcelona-Catalunya Grand Prix qualifying on Saturday.
The reason for doing so was not disclosed in the statement.
Red Bull's Verstappen, who had been on pole at Zandvoort every year since the circuit returned in 2021 and has yet to be beaten there, will still line up alongside the Briton on the front row.
Kimi Antonelli will either be Formula One's youngest world champion, well before the end of the season on current form, or the first driver to win five races in a row in a single campaign and not take the title.
In terms of achievement, McLaren are the second most successful Formula One team of all time with 203 grand prix victories since the first in 1968.
The aftershock of Sunday's double disqualification in Nevada hangs over champions McLaren ahead of a sprint weekend in Qatar that could hand Lando Norris his first F1 crown -- or erode his lead.
Verstappen, who had started alongside Norris on the front row, was leading by lap three and could then build a buffer and take control.
New cars, new engines, change in qualifying, one rookie are among the many updates from the 2026 F1 season.
Kimi Antonelli of Mercedes wins the Japanese Grand Prix, becoming the youngest-ever championship leader. The race saw a high-speed crash involving Oliver Bearman, who was later cleared by doctors.
Australian Oscar Piastri roared back from season-opening disappointment in his home race by winning the Chinese Formula One Grand Prix from pole position in a McLaren one-two with championship-leading teammate Lando Norris on Sunday.
Max Verstappen says he is considering F1 retirement after a frustrating start to the season, saying all options are open despite his Red Bull contract till 2028.
Verstappen collided with Leclerc and twice with Mercedes' George Russell after the safety car restart.
Piastri now leads Britain's Norris by 14 points with five rounds and two sprints remaining, while Verstappen has slashed his gap to the Australian to 40 after being 104 behind at the end of August.
Formula One will crown its champion in Abu Dhabi on Sunday with McLaren's Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri both seeking to dethrone Red Bull's Max Verstappen and deny the Dutchman his fifth title in a row.
Australian driver Oscar Piastri, 23, emerged victorious in his first ever Formula One race at the Hungarian Grand Prix on Sunday.
Kimi Antonelli secured his second consecutive pole position at the Japanese Grand Prix, leading a Mercedes front-row lockout. Max Verstappen struggled, starting 11th.
Red Bull are concerned about their constructors' title defence being weakened at a time when McLaren are emerging as a threat
A fired-up Max Verstappen ended his barren run as he outclassed the McLarens to register a dominant victory at the Italian Grand Prix in Monza on Sunday.
Red Bull's Max Verstappen secured a dominant win from pole position in the Azerbaijan Grand Prix in Baku, leading the race from start to finish.
George Russell wins F1's Singapore GP as McLaren secures constructors' title
Red Bull boss Christian Horner said the 2025 F1 season was turning into a two-horse race between the McLaren drivers after his team had a home Austrian Grand Prix to forget on Sunday.
Max Verstappen asked a journalist to leave his Thursday media briefing at the Japanese Grand Prix, with the Dutchman still upset over a question asked by the same reporter in December about an incident that potentially cost him a fifth straight drivers' title.
George Russell is aiming for a comeback at the Canadian Grand Prix with car upgrades and a renewed focus on fundamental racing skills after teammate Kimi Antonelli's strong performance.
Mercedes's George Russell lapped the circuit in one minute, 18.518 seconds to win the Australian Open F1 Grand Prix qualifying.
Verstappen wins in Qatar to ensure three-way title showdown
