Mercedes driver George Russell pipped Ferrari's Carlos Sainz to pole position at the Las Vegas Grand Prix with the final lap of an engrossing qualifying session.
Russell snuck ahead of Sainz by just 0.098 seconds while Alpine's Pierre Gasly pulled off a major shock by taking third place.
Ferrari's Charles Leclerc was fourth after a messy session, while Red Bull's Max Verstappen took fifth, ahead of his title rival Lando Norris of McLaren.
Norris needs to finish the race ahead of Verstappen to take the title fight to the next race in Qatar.
Two errors by Lewis Hamilton consigned him to 10th place in his Mercedes when he should have been fighting for a place at the front with Russell.
Hamilton had topped the second session of qualifying but when it came to pushing to the limit and finding the last little bit of time, he fell short, as has become something of a trend this year.
Mercedes have looked strong all weekend, Hamilton topping both Friday practice sessions and Russell Saturday's, and that form continued through into qualifying.
Russell hit the wall on his first run and needed a change of front wing, but he stayed collected and demanded to be sent out last to ensure he got the best of the track conditions.
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