Red Bull Racing celebrated achieving 100 pole positions at the Chinese Grand Prix last weekend where they claimed their first pole back in 2009.
We take a look at some of the most unforgettable pole positions and which legendary drivers earned it for them.
1. Sebastian Vettel, China, 2009
A wet race at Shanghai and the Red Bull was struggling with Vettel having issues with his driveshaft in the last two sessions of qualifying. But, he was able to send himself to the top of the Q2 timesheet and then finished Q3 with a time of 1:36.184 to secure the teams' first pole position. The team then went on to claim their first win with a one-two finish with Vettel first and Aussie team-mate Mark Webber finishing behind him in second place.
2. Sebastian Vettel, Abu Dhabi, 2010
Another great one from Sebastian Vettel at the season finale beating Lewis Hamilton to claim pole by 0.031s. It was his tenth pole of the season which made him the seventh driver in F1 history to manage that. Red Bull also set another record that weekend with the team equalling McLaren's fifteen poles in one season back in 1988. Vettel took the top spot again after dropping to P2 mid-race due to a pitstop. He was also crowned World Champion for the first time.
3. Daniel Ricciardo, Monaco, 2018
Around 44% of drivers who qualify pole position at the Monte Carlo track end up winning the race which Ricciardo just managed to achieve. Starting on pole and breaking a lap record time of 1:10:118, the Honey Badger didn't find it too easy during Sunday's race. An issue with the car meant that he was 25% down on power whilst trying to fly through the last 50 laps of the race. Himself and Vettel had been attacking each other through the narrow circuit and Ricciardo pulled out his all to take the win beating the Ferrari driver.
4. Max Verstappen, Abu Dhabi, 2021
If you're a Lewis Hamilton fan you will remember this one. A title decider between Verstappen and Hamilton to see who would be crowned World Champion. Equal points - but Verstappen was the lucky one. Outpacing Hamilton in Q3 by more than half a second with a time of 1:22.480. Verstappen came out on top and won his first World Champion title which still remains controversial to this day.
5 Max Verstappen, China, 2024
15 years later and Red Bull have reached 100 pole positions - same place, different driver. This time out it's the 3x World Champion Verstappen. Dominating the past two seasons, it was no question to who was going to win this one. Verstappen had won the last five pole positions including Abu Dhabi last year and this one is certainly the most special. This result means that Red Bull are sixth on the all-time list, just seven poles behind Lotus who are first. How many more races to beat Lotus' record? Will the next one be from Sergio Perez?
Harley Parker
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