Leclerc earns pole for the Azerbaijan GP while title challenger Norris will start 16th

BAKU, Azerbaijan (AP) — Charles Leclerc qualified on pole position for the Azerbaijan Grand Prix and Max Verstappen was sixth on Saturday.

Lando Norris is set to start Sunday's race 16th following a session that could have a big impact on the Formula 1 title race.

Ferrari's Leclerc, who won the last race in Italy, was fastest by .321 seconds from McLaren's Oscar Piastri, and the second Ferrari of Carlos Sainz Jr. was third. Pole marked a dramatic turnaround for Leclerc, who crashed in the first practice session Friday.

“It hasn’t been an easy weekend because (of) the crash in FP1, which didn’t make me lose confidence. I knew that the pace was there," Leclerc said. "But you’ve got to build back up to speed.”

Leclerc is on pole in Baku for the fourth year running, but he has yet to win the race.

Norris was on what seemed to be a lap fast enough to progress from the first part of qualifying as one of the top 15. But he had to slow for a yellow flag that was apparently for Esteban Ocon's slow-moving Alpine. Norris' time from his first lap missed the 15th-place cutoff by .137 of a second.

“There was nothing I could do” about the yellow flag, Norris said. “Frustrating, but now we look ahead to tomorrow and see where we can maximize the result.”

Norris was initially 17th in qualifying but moved up a place on the grid hours later when Pierre Gasly, who had been 13th, was disqualified for breaking rules on fuel flow rates.

Norris is second in the standings, 62 points behind Verstappen with eight races remaining. He has been steadily cutting into Verstappen's lead, finishing ahead of the champion at three of the last four races, including a win at Verstappen's home Dutch Grand Prix.

McLaren confirmed before the race weekend that it would favor Norris over Piastri to help his title challenge, with Norris suggesting the Australian would be asked to make way for him on track in some situations.

That almost certainly won't happen Sunday with 15 places separating the teammates in qualifying. Piastri is aiming to fight for a second career win.

“Our race pace is good, but the Ferrari is certainly not slow,” he said.

Defending champion Verstappen, who hasn't won any of the last six races, seemed better in Baku but was sixth and said he'd clipped a curb at “the worst time it could have happened.” Red Bull teammate Sergio Perez was fourth, beating Verstappen in qualifying for the first time all year.

Verstappen said the Red Bull was improved from the Italian Grand Prix, where he finished sixth, but questioned whether the team's attempts to refine the setup ahead of qualifying made things worse.

"On a street circuit you need to be comfortable and confident to be able to attack corners and it is harder to do this when the car is a bit more unpredictable," he said.

George Russell was fifth for Mercedes, ahead of Verstappen, with Lewis Hamilton seventh and Fernando Alonso eighth for Aston Martin.

There was a bizarre incident in the final part of qualifying when Williams' Alex Albon stopped on his way out of the pits to remove a large cooling fan that the team left in his air intake. Albon qualified 10th and the team was fined 5,000 euros ($5,500). Throwing the cooling fan out of the car as Albon did was the “least worst option” because it avoided further disrupting the session, the stewards' ruling said.

Albon's teammate Franco Colapinto, in only his second F1 race weekend, was ninth in the best qualifying result for an Argentine driver in 42 years.

British teen Oliver Bearman, standing in at Haas for the suspended Kevin Magnussen, was 11th after recovering from a crash in the third practice Saturday morning.

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

Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc of Monaco in action during a Formula One Grand Prix practice in Baku, Azerbaijan, on Saturday, Sept. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Sergei Grits)

Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc of Monaco in action during a Formula One Grand Prix qualifying in Baku, Azerbaijan, on Saturday, Sept. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Sergei Grits)

Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc of Monaco in action during a Formula One Grand Prix qualifying in Baku, Azerbaijan, on Saturday, Sept. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Sergei Grits)

Haas driver Oliver Bearman of the United Kingdom walks through the pit lane during the Formula One Grand Prix qualifying in Baku, Azerbaijan, on Saturday, Sept. 14, 2024. (Ali Haideric/Pool via AP)

Red Bull driver Max Verstappen of the Netherlands enters the pit lane during the Formula One Grand Prix qualifying in Baku, Azerbaijan, on Saturday, Sept. 14, 2024. (Ali Haideric/Pool via AP)

McLaren driver Lando Norris of Britain in action during a Formula One Grand Prix practice in Baku, Azerbaijan, on Saturday, Sept. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Sergei Grits)

Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc of Monaco in action during a Formula One Grand Prix qualifying in Baku, Azerbaijan, on Saturday, Sept. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Sergei Grits)

Manchester City’s stunning slump continued Saturday with a 2-1 loss to Aston Villa in the Premier League.

Goals from Jhon Duran and Morgan Rogers at Villa Park consigned the four-time defending champion to a ninth defeat in 12 games in a season that is unravelling. Pep Guardiola’s team has won just once during that run.

“We have to stay positive, even though it’s difficult, and we have to keep working hard,” City striker Erling Haaland said.

Phil Foden pulled a goal back for City in stoppage time, but it wasn’t enough to spark a late comeback.

City dropped to sixth in the standings — nine points below leader Liverpool, having played two games more. Villa climbed to fifth.

Nottingham is up to third after ending Brentford's unbeaten home record with a 2-0 win, and Newcastle routed Ipswich 4-0. West Ham drew 1-1 with Brighton.

City’s remarkable fall shows little sign of stopping, with Guardiola admitting last week that he had not been good enough to turn his team’s form around.

Defeat meant the once-dominant City is without a win in any of its last eight away games in all competitions. While it looks unlikely to win a fifth-straight title, a place in the top four and Champions League qualification could also be in jeopardy.

“We concede the goals we don’t concede in the past, we (don’t) score the goals we score in the past,” Guardiola said. “We have to think positive and I have incredible trust in the guys. Some of them have incredible pride and desire to do it. We have to find a way, step by step, sooner or later to find a way back.”

Only once under Guardiola has City managed to win the title when losing six times in the league. That was in the 2020-21 campaign, when it lost two of its last three games, having already been confirmed champion.

City lost nine times when Liverpool won the title in ’19-20, but its sixth defeat didn’t come until the February of that campaign. Guardiola also lost six times in the league in his first season in English soccer in ’16-17 and City finished third in the standings.

The latest defeat could have been even more emphatic against a dominant Villa.Duran scored his sixth goal in as many starts in the 16th minute from Rogers’ assist.

Duran had a goal disallowed for offside in the second half and Rogers hit the post before doubling Villa’s lead in the 65th.

Foden’s goal in the third minute of added time came too late for City.

James Robson is at https://twitter.com/jamesalanrobson

AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer

Newcastle United's Jacob Murphy celebrates scoring during the English Premier League soccer match between Ipswich Town and Newcastle United at Portman Road, Ipswich, England, Saturday Dec. 21, 2024. (Bradley Collyer/PA via AP)

Newcastle United's Alexander Isak celebrates scoring during the English Premier League soccer match between Ipswich Town and Newcastle United at Portman Road, Ipswich, England, Saturday Dec. 21, 2024. (Bradley Collyer/PA via AP)

Nottingham Forest's Anthony Elanga, centre right, shoots on target during during the English Premier League soccer match between Brentford and Nottingham Forest at the Gtech Community Stadium, London, Saturday Dec. 21, 2024. (John Walton/PA via AP)

Nottingham Forest's Anthony Elanga, right, celebrates after scoring his sides second goal during during the English Premier League soccer match between Brentford and Nottingham Forest at the Gtech Community Stadium, London, Saturday Dec. 21, 2024. (John Walton/PA via AP)

Manchester City's head coach Pep Guardiola, center, and players leave the field at the end of the English Premier League soccer match between Aston Villa and Manchester City, at Villa Park in Birmingham, England, Saturday, Dec. 21, 2024. (AP Photo/Rui Vieira)

Aston Villa's Morgan Rogers, center, celebrates with teammates after scoring his side's second goal during the English Premier League soccer match between Aston Villa and Manchester City, at Villa Park in Birmingham, England, Saturday, Dec. 21, 2024. (AP Photo/Rui Vieira)

Aston Villa's Jhon Duran celebrates after scoring the opening goal during the English Premier League soccer match between Aston Villa and Manchester City, at Villa Park in Birmingham, England, Saturday, Dec. 21, 2024. (AP Photo/Rui Vieira)

Manchester City's head coach Pep Guardiola reacts during the English Premier League soccer match between Aston Villa and Manchester City, at Villa Park in Birmingham, England, Saturday, Dec. 21, 2024. (AP Photo/Rui Vieira)

Manchester City's Phil Foden reacts after Aston Villa's Morgan Rogers scoring his side's second goal during the English Premier League soccer match between Aston Villa and Manchester City, at Villa Park in Birmingham, England, Saturday, Dec. 21, 2024. (AP Photo/Rui Vieira)