Alpine's Pierre Gasly took the first pole position of his Formula 1 career at the Italian Grand Prix in Monza, producing a one-minute 21.786-second lap to beat George Russell in qualifying. BBC commentators called it "a blinding lap" and said Monza was left with a different and unexpected polesitter after a tightly packed session. Gasly celebrated his maiden pole after 189 Grand Prix starts and nine years pursuing the result, saying the whole qualifying felt incredible from the first Q1 lap. He will start first for Sunday's Italian Grand Prix, handing Alpine a shock front-row advantage over the usual title-contending teams.
