Valtteri Bottas did his job to perfection as he secured his 20th Formula 1 pole position in the Sprint Qualifying at the Sao Paulo Grand Prix.
The Finn went aggressive opting for the soft tyres for the 24-lap dash around Interlagos, and the extra grip paid off as he took the lead at the start and didn't look back.
All eyes though were on Lewis Hamilton starting last after being disqualified for a DRS infringement following qualifying on Friday.
And the seven-time world champion was on fire as he gained a massive 15 places from 20th to P5.
Sprint Review
A good start from Bottas on soft tyres saw him jump into the lead on the run to Turn 1, with Carlos Sainz pushing Verstappen down to third at Turn 4.
LIGHTS OUT IN SAO PAULO!
— Formula 1 (@F1) November 13, 2021
Bottas takes the lead into Turn 1! And Sainz is up to second, with Verstappen third#BrazilGP 🇧🇷 #F1Sprint pic.twitter.com/KeG347oM18
Behind, Hamilton made a brilliant start gaining six places on the opening lap before making further gains through the midfield to 11th.
The Mercedes would briefly get stuck in a DRS train behind Daniel Ricciardo but continued his progress into the top 10.
Ahead, Verstappen wasted little time in clearing the Ferrari to regain second and began to close in on Bottas for the lead.
But the story was Hamilton, as he charged past Charles Leclerc before diving ahead of Lando Norris in the closing laps to finish 5th, which becomes P10 on the grid for Sunday after his engine penalty.
When you realise Lewis is four seconds off the podium despite starting last. 🤯🤯🤯
— Mercedes-AMG PETRONAS F1 Team (@MercedesAMGF1) November 13, 2021
Capping off a great end to the day for Mercedes, Bottas had the pace to keep Max at bay to claim a crucial pole position for Sunday's Grand Prix.
The Dutchman did gain two further points to extend his championship lead to 21, but certainly, there will be some frustration given the speed of their rivals.
Sainz held off Perez in the second Red Bull to finish third, while Hamilton was only a second behind the Mexican in fifth, highlighting his incredible pace.
Norris took sixth ahead of Leclerc, with a poor start dropping Pierre Gasly to eighth in the AlphaTauri. Esteban Ocon was ninth and Sebastian Vettel rounded out the top 10.
Full results from the Sprint can be seen below:
