George Russell mocks Max Verstappen's penalty as he takes pole for Canadian GP

The feud between George Russell and four-time reigning Formula 1 champion Max Verstappen could continue at the Canadian Grand Prix after the two locked up the front row in Saturday qualifying.

Russell of Mercedes won the pole for the sixth time in his F1 career with a lap of 1 minute, 10.899 seconds to best Verstappen of Red Bull, who was .160 seconds behind.

Russell also won the pole in Montreal last year but finished third as Verstappen won the race.

The two have sparred on-track frequently over the last few seasons and it happened again last weekend at the Spanish Grand Prix, where Verstappen made contact with Russell that shoved Russell off course. The maneuver earned Verstappen three penalty points and put him just one point away from a one-race suspension.

Verstappen ultimately said his actions were inappropriate, an admission that shocked Russell, who believes the champion is a dirty driver. Verstappen in Montreal vowed not to change his aggressive driving style despite staring down a possible race suspension.

“We're mates, it's all good,” Russell joked. “I've got a few more points on my license to play with.”

Russell's comments were clearly playing to the crowd at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve, where they roared with laughter as he mocked Verstappen's penalty situation. He later said in the post-qualifying news conference that he doesn't expect any problems Sunday.

“We’re both fighting for the win here, and neither of us are really in a championship battle,” he said. “I haven’t had a win this year, so I want to get one on the board. Time will tell.”

Verstappen, for his part, was completely over the entire saga.

“I don’t need to hear it again. It’s really pissing me off,” he said. “I mean, you were speaking about it on Thursday. It’s such a waste of time. It’s very childish. So, that’s why I also don’t want to say too much because it’s really annoying, this world that we live in.”

Russell backed Verstappen up a bit.

“I don’t think any driver goes out looking to crash into somebody and get penalty points on your license. Max is one of the best drivers. There’s no reason for him to race any differently, and I’m not sitting here thinking he’s going to give us more room,” Russell said. "If anything, probably the opposite to try and prove a point.

“So I’ll be keeping an eye, but ultimately, we’re all here to win. You’re not going to do something that’s going to jeopardize yourself from the race. It’s a busy season as well. If you get a race ban, you get a race ban and spend some time at home. It’s not ideal, but it’s not the end of the world.”

The qualifying results were a bit of a surprise considering the season-long domination of McLaren, including driver championship leader Oscar Piastri. But he qualified third, while teammate Lando Norris was seventh.

The duo has combined to win seven of nine races this season and are 1-2 in the championship standings. Verstappen, who has indicated he believes his hopes for a fifth consecutive title are fading, has won twice.

Piastri said he was satisfied with third.

“After how practice went I'm pretty happy at the moment,” he said. “It was a nice turnaround. I'm pretty happy with third, which is a bit different this year.”

Kimi Antonelli, Russell's teammate at Mercedes, qualified fourth and was followed by Lewis Hamilton of Ferrari and Fernando Alonso in his best qualifying effort of the season for Aston Martin.

After Norris in seventh was Charles Leclerc of Ferrari, Isack Hadjar of Racing Bulls, and Alex Albon of Williams.

Albon was involved in a bizarre incident in the first qualifying group when his engine cover inexplicably blew off his Williams and littered the track with debris. It brought out a red flag but didn't prevent him from advancing to the next round.

His teammate, Carlos Sainz Jr., wasn't as fortunate and was eliminated in the first round.

Yuki Tsunoda, meanwhile, qualified 11th but received a 10-place grid infraction and two penalty points for passing Piastri under the red flag in Saturday's earlier practice session.

AP auto racing: https://apnews.com/hub/auto-racing

Mercedes driver George Russell, of the United Kingdom, celebrates after taking the pole in the qualifying session at the F1 Canadian Grand Prix auto race Saturday, June 14, 2025, in Montreal. (Christopher Katsarov/The Canadian Press via AP)

Red Bull Racing driver Max Verstappen, of the Netherlands, drives during the third practice session at the F1 Canadian Grand Prix auto race, Saturday, June 14, 2025, in Montreal. (Jacques Boissinot/The Canadian Press via AP)

Red Bull Racing driver Max Verstappen, of the Netherlands, stands in his garage during the third practice session at the F1 Canadian Grand Prix auto race, Saturday, June 14, 2025, in Montreal. (Graham Hughes/The Canadian Press via AP)

Mercedes driver George Russell, of Britain, drives during the third practice session at the F1 Canadian Grand Prix auto race, Saturday, June 14, 2025, in Montreal. (Jacques Boissinot/The Canadian Press via AP)

Mercedes driver George Russell, of Britain, sits in his car during the third practice session at the F1 Canadian Grand Prix auto race, Saturday, June 14, 2025, in Montreal. (Christinne Muschi/The Canadian Press via AP)

ALEPPO, Syria (AP) — First responders on Sunday entered a contested neighborhood in Syria’ s northern city of Aleppo after days of deadly clashes between government forces and Kurdish-led forces. Syrian state media said the military was deployed in large numbers.

The clashes broke out Tuesday in the predominantly Kurdish neighborhoods of Sheikh Maqsoud, Achrafieh and Bani Zaid after the government and the Syrian Democratic Forces, the main Kurdish-led force in the country, failed to make progress on how to merge the SDF into the national army. Security forces captured Achrafieh and Bani Zaid.

The fighting between the two sides was the most intense since the fall of then-President Bashar Assad to insurgents in December 2024. At least 23 people were killed in five days of clashes and more than 140,000 were displaced amid shelling and drone strikes.

The U.S.-backed SDF, which have played a key role in combating the Islamic State group in large swaths of eastern Syria, are the largest force yet to be absorbed into Syria's national army. Some of the factions that make up the army, however, were previously Turkish-backed insurgent groups that have a long history of clashing with Kurdish forces.

The Kurdish fighters have now evacuated from the Sheikh Maqsoud neighborhood to northeastern Syria, which is under the control of the SDF. However, they said in a statement they will continue to fight now that the wounded and civilians have been evacuated, in what they called a “partial ceasefire.”

The neighborhood appeared calm Sunday. The United Nations said it was trying to dispatch more convoys to the neighborhoods with food, fuel, blankets and other urgent supplies.

Government security forces brought journalists to tour the devastated area, showing them the damaged Khalid al-Fajer Hospital and a military position belonging to the SDF’s security forces that government forces had targeted.

The SDF statement accused the government of targeting the hospital “dozens of times” before patients were evacuated. Damascus accused the Kurdish-led group of using the hospital and other civilian facilities as military positions.

On one street, Syrian Red Crescent first responders spoke to a resident surrounded by charred cars and badly damaged residential buildings.

Some residents told The Associated Press that SDF forces did not allow their cars through checkpoints to leave.

“We lived a night of horror. I still cannot believe that I am right here standing on my own two feet,” said Ahmad Shaikho. “So far the situation has been calm. There hasn’t been any gunfire.”

Syrian Civil Defense first responders have been disarming improvised mines that they say were left by the Kurdish forces as booby traps.

Residents who fled are not being allowed back into the neighborhood until all the mines are cleared. Some were reminded of the displacement during Syria’s long civil war.

“I want to go back to my home, I beg you,” said Hoda Alnasiri.

Associated Press journalist Kareem Chehayeb in Beirut contributed to this report.

Sandbag barriers used as fighting positions by Kurdish fighters, left inside a destroyed mosque in the Sheikh Maqsoud neighborhood, where clashes between government forces and Kurdish fighters have been taking place in the northern city of Aleppo, Syria, Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026. (AP Photo/Ghaith Alsayed)

Burned vehicles at one of the Kurdish fighters positions at the Sheikh Maqsoud neighborhood, where clashes between government forces and Kurdish fighters have been taking place in the northern city of Aleppo, Syria, Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026. (AP Photo/Ghaith Alsayed)

People flee the Sheikh Maqsoud neighborhood, where clashes between government forces and Kurdish fighters have been taking place in the northern city of Aleppo, Syria, Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026. (AP Photo/Ghaith Alsayed)

A Syrian military police convoy enters the Sheikh Maqsoud neighborhood, where clashes between government forces and Kurdish fighters have been taking place in the northern city of Aleppo, Syria, Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026. (AP Photo/Ghaith Alsayed)

Burned vehicles and ammunitions left at one of the Kurdish fighters positions at the Sheikh Maqsoud neighborhood, where clashes between government forces and Kurdish fighters have been taking place in the northern city of Aleppo, Syria, Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026. (AP Photo/Ghaith Alsayed)