WATCH: Ride onboard with Verstappen for his captivating Sprint Qualifying pole lap in Austin

Max Verstappen will return to the front of the grid for the first time in almost four months after he narrowly beat George Russell to pole position for the Sprint around the Circuit of the Americas.

With all eyes on the championship battle between the Red Bull driver and Lando Norris, he set down a decisive marker by claiming P1 by just 0.012s with a lap time of 1m 32.833s, while the McLaren driver qualified in P4.

READ MORE: Verstappen pips Russell to Sprint Qualifying pole in Austin by 0.012s

The Dutchman made the most of his team’s upgrades package introduced for this weekend, putting himself in the best place for Saturday’s 19-lap Sprint.

Click go on the video player above to ride onboard with Verstappen in Austin.