Miami GP sprint qualifying: Verstappen takes pole from Leclerc

Well, that didn't quite live up to the hype after the opening two sessions, but maybe tomorrow's short race will throw up some surprises.

Definitely time for us all to go to bed now. Get some rest and then join us again on Saturday from 16:30 BST for build-up to the second sprint race of the season, followed by qualifying for the main grand prix on Sunday.

Catch you tomorrow!

Final word of the night goes to Lando Norris, who topped both SQ1 and SQ2 but will line up ninth on the sprint grid on Saturday.

"I just pushed too hard, simple as that," says the McLaren man. "Just silly, to be honest.

"Couple of mistakes in Turn One and a big spiral from there. A shame, because I think we did a good job and the upgrades were working."

Can he challenge in the race? "I hope so. The pace was really good. Probably one of the quickest. Disappointing with today but I'll do my best tomorrow."

Red Bull are also in prime position in the constructors' championship after their fourth win in five races and they now hold a 44-point lead over nearest rivals Ferrari.

Lando Norris' second place in China has boosted McLaren's advantage over fourth-placed Mercedes to 44 points, while Nico Hulkenberg's top-10 finish two weeks ago gives Haas a bump up to five points.

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Would anyone bet against Max Verstappen sealing a fourth consecutive drivers' world championship this year? Probably not. The Red Bull man was superior again at the Chinese Grand Prix, taking victory in both the sprint and main race.

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The top nine drivers all scored points in Shanghai and stayed in the same positions they were in after the Japanese Grand Prix.

Lance Stroll was involved in a messy coming together with Daniel Ricciardo last time out but the Canadian held on to to 10th place, two points clear of RB's Yuki Tsunoda on 11th spot.

If you're new to the whole sprint format, there are championship points on offer from first down to eighth in tomorrow's sprint race, so let's have a quick look at how the title race looks before we wave goodbye...

Daniel Ricciardo was gutted after the Chinese Grand Prix but he's back to his smiley best in Miami .

So, where did that result come from? I don't know! I mean, I know, I've been able to do it before," Ricciardo tells Sky Sports. "I know it's in me, but did I expect to do a second-row start? Probably not that good.

"I felt really good in Q2 and I knew that lap would be good enough for Q3, so I think at that point we were P5, and in my head I was like, 'ah, P5 would be really nice for Q3,' then we got P4 and it was wild. The laps were good but it's hard to be clean around here, it's a tricky track.

"I'm very proud of what I did today but the team have brought the updates the last few races and things look like they're turning around. It's just nice starting towards the front."

George Russell will start the sprint race in 11th place and says the team are unsure what happened to the upgraded Mercedes today.

In practice, the soft tyre was feeling really good on our car but on the mediums, we just couldn't get the sweet spot," says Russell. And I found myself on the wrong side of it.

"It was tight out there. We shouldn't have been in the position to be that close to the margins cut off. We need to work over that and make some improvements for the main qualifying."

The first thing Max Verstappen asked on the radio after securing pole position was: "Lol. What happened to the others? That was terrible!"

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Max Verstappen is on sprint pole tomorrow. Here's what he had to say after taking the top spot.

"To be honest with you, it felt pretty terrible," said the Red Bull driver. "I don't know, maybe that last session was just a bit difficult, as already in SQ2, I didn't feel great.

"SQ3 just felt a bit similar for me, I didn't really improve a lot on the softs, but somehow, I'm first. Of course, I'll happily take it but yeah, didn't really feel enjoyable out there today. "

In practice, it felt really, really nice, I was very comfortable - and confident. Qualifying, not so much.

"I thought after practice we were confident we could fight for pole, then in qualifying, it didn't really look like that for me. But somehow, we still ended up in first.

"I don't know what happened to the other cars in the last lap."

"Yeah wow. Awesome, awesome. It's good. It's good. We belong towards the front, so, happy for everyone."

Daniel Ricciardo has an even bigger smile on his face than usual after his fourth place in sprint qualifying. Can the RB driver stay in the points tomorrow?

11. George Russell (Mercedes)

12. Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes)

13. Esteban Ocon (Alpine)

14. Kevin Magnussen (Haas)

15. Yuki Tsunoda (RB)

16. Pierre Gasly (Alpine)

17. Zhou Guanyu (Sauber)

18. Valtteri Bottas (Sauber)

19. Logan Sargeant (Williams)

20. Alex Albon (Williams)

What a disappointing session for McLaren. Those soft tyres did not want to play ball.

1. Max Verstappen (Red Bull) - 1.27.641

2. Charles Leclerc (Ferrari)

3. Sergio Perez (Red Bull)

4. Daniel Ricciardo (RB)

5. Carlos Sainz (Ferrari)

6. Oscar Piastri (McLaren)

7. Lance Stroll (Aston Martin)

8. Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin)

9. Lando Norris (McLaren)

10. Nico Hulkenberg (Haas)

Little mistakes don't punish Max Verstappen like some others. The reigning world champion goes onto provisional pole as he beats his team-mate Sergio Perez.

Lando Norris can only manage ninth! Charles Leclerc is on the front row with Verstappen.

Max Verstappen and his Red Bull are rapid in the first sector but the Dutchman takes a slight wobble. Will that hinder his chances for a sprint pole?

Sergio Perez goes to the top and provisional pole position.

Blink and you miss this sprint qualifying.

Right, the Haas of Nico Hulkenberg is starting his flying lap.

The clock is ticking down and the crowd are fanning themselves from the heat.

Anyone want to give it go? Yes. Cars are lining up now to come and play.