Sixty-five thousand fans were on their feet and euphoric as they watched their home hero Max Verstappen fend off title rival Lewis Hamilton to snatch pole position for the returning Dutch Grand Prix.

Verstappen looked in control throughout qualifying and cruised through the opening two segments with what appeared to be plenty left in the tank. And he unleashed that pace when it mattered to take provisional pole – and improved again on his second run leading to an eruption in the grandstands.

Hamilton improved on his final lap – finding two tenths on Verstappen in the final sector – but it wasn’t quite enough as he leapfrogged Mercedes team mate Valtteri Bottas, 0.038s adrift from Dutchman Verstappen who took his sixth pole position in seven Grands Prix.

AlphaTauri’s Pierre Gasly took a superb fourth – equalling his starting spot in Azerbaijan – where incidentally he went on to finish on the podium in third with Charles Leclerc, who was quickest in Q1, the leading Ferrari in fifth.