'Fantastic' Max on Pole

Dutchman's Red Bull looks quick, say rivals Norris and Piastri, who are right behind him

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MONZA - Max Verstappen took pole position on Sept 6 for the Italian Grand Prix, the reigning Formula One champion giving himself a chance at Monza of slowing McLaren's dominance.

The Dutchman, who has won the last four drivers' titles with Red Bull, will start in the front row alongside Lando Norris, who was just ahead of his McLaren teammate and championship leader Oscar Piastri.

"Q3 felt good, happy with the laps and to be on pole here is fantastic. The car has been working well here the whole weekend and to be able to fight for pole I'm very happy," said Verstappen.

"We were still lacking a tiny amount (going into qualifying), we made some final changes which allowed me to push a bit more which is exactly what you need in qualifying. For us, it's a great moment.

"Historically this season the race has always been more complicated for us but we'll give it everything we have. That's all we can do and we will see what happens."

Heading into this weekend, Piastri leads the drivers' championship on 309 points, ahead of Norris (275) and Verstappen (205).