Ferrari suffered early heartbreak at the first of their two home grands prix this year, with Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc failing to make it out of Q2 at the Imola Grand Prix.
Aston Martin were rewarded for zagging on their tire choice, going out on the medium compound and setting the sixth and seventh fastest times right at the death to knock out the Ferraris.
Max Verstappen was pipped to pole by Oscar Piastri by just 34 thousandths of a second, with George Russell slotting into third ahead of Lando Norris after another untidy lap from the second McLaren driver.
Yuki Tsunoda was knocked out of qualifying early, after a scary crash which red flagged the session.
Tsunoda walked away from the crash apparently unharmed, but his mechanics will have a tough job on their hands to repair the wreckage of his car before Sunday's race.
Meanwhile, Franco Colapinto looks likely to be penalised after being released from his garage before a post-red flag restart time had been announced by the FIA, with George Russell getting a one-place penalty for a similar incident in the past.
The session was red flagged for a second time with just seconds to go when Colapinto demolished his Alpine, getting gingerly out of the car as the session ended early.
There was a long gap between Q1 and Q2, with stewards needing to fix the barriers after Colapinto's crash before there was a further delay as the FIA reviewed Ollie Bearman's final lap, which was deleted for being finished under a red flag – an incredibly marginal call which was pored over frame by frame.
F1 Qualifying Results: Imola Grand Prix 2025
1. Oscar Piastri [McLaren] 1:14.670sec
2. Max Verstappen [Red Bull] +0.034s
3. George Russell [Mercedes] +0.137s
4. Lando Norris [McLaren] +0.292s
5. Fernando Alonso [Aston Martin] +0.761s
6. Carlos Sainz [Williams] +0.762s
7. Alex Albon [Williams] +0.803s
8. Lance Stroll [Aston Martin] +0.911s
9. Isack Hadjar [Racing Bulls] +1.076s
10. Pierre Gasly [Alpine] +1.117s
ELIMINATED IN Q2
11. Charles Leclerc [Ferrari]
12. Lewis Hamilton [Ferrari]
13. Kimi Antonelli [Mercedes]
14. Gabriel Bortoleto [Sauber]
15. Franco Colapinto [Alpine]