Kiwi Liam Lawson will start 15th on the gird for the US Grand Prix sprint race in his first drive as a fulltime racer for Red Bull.
After cooling his heels in pitlane through the opening months of the F1 championship, Lawson, 22, replaced Aussie Daniel Ricciardo in a RB Formula One Team Honda for the final six rounds, beginning with this weeke's event at Austin, Texas.
After recording the 13th-fastest time (1m 34.443s) in practice, he graduated past the first sprint qualifying session in 12th (1m 34.617s), but could not crack the too 10 in Q2, after his lap (1m 34.284s) was disallowed for running off the track.
Significantly, he was faster than teammate Yuki Tsunoda in Q1, but the Japanese driver improved with each lap, progressing to Q3 and qualifying ninth in 1m 33.802s.
"The build-up was good and SQ1 was good as well," reflected Lawson. "You get one lap in Q2 and it was just really scrappy from turn one.
"I went wide on the curve and got massive wheel spin, and from there, you're trying to make up time for the rest of the lap. Just a scrappy lap.
"It's a shame, because the car's really fast, and I felt good and comfortable. We'll learn from it tomorrow."
Three-time defending champion and championship leader Max Verstappen grabbed pole position for the sprint race, pipping Englishman George Russell in 1m 32.833s
Lawson stepped into the Alpha Tauri car last year, when Ricciardo broke his hand, gaining a championship point for his ninth placing at Singapore, before handing the wheel back to the Australian.
The US sprint event is scheduled for Sunday morning (NZ time), followed by qualifying for the 56-lap main event, which takes place on Monday morning.
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