Listen to this article Carlos Sainz qualified third, with Mercedes drivers Lewis Hamilton and George Russell finishing down in fifth and ninth. After the first runs in Q3 it was Sainz who led the way by 0.044s ahead of Leclerc, with Verstappen, who had topped Q2, facing a deficit of 0.056s and complaining that his first out lap in the final segment of the session was too slow, which cost him tyre temperature. On the final fliers, Leclerc led the trio around and recorded the best time in the track’s middle sector on his way to a 1m30.558s. Sainz could only manage a personal best time in the final sector, which meant he slotted in 0.129s behind his teammate, with Verstappen the last to cross the line. He had gone quickest in the first sector but lost time as the lap wore on and eventually missed out on repeating his pole from the 2021 curtain raiser at the same venue. Sergio Perez made it a Red Bull 2-4, with Ha …