Lando Norris beats George Russell to Dutch GP pole as McLaren completes Zandvoort sweep
Norris delivers in the rain-hit finale
Lando Norris secured pole position for the Dutch Grand Prix, edging George Russell by 0.102 seconds as championship leader Kimi Antonelli completed the top three at Zandvoort.
The result capped a perfect qualifying performance for McLaren, with the reigning champions topping every session. Norris had already led Q2 and established provisional pole in Q3 with a 1m11.344s lap, 0.151s clear of Russell. Oscar Piastri was two-tenths further back in third.
Dry conditions held through the opening phase of qualifying, but rain was approaching the seaside circuit. That prompted a rush into the pit lane for final attempts, creating an unusually tense finish. Norris and Russell emerged at identical times and were seen racing one another on their out-laps with five minutes remaining.
Norris eventually cleared the traffic and crossed the line first, lowering the benchmark to 1m11.163s. Russell also improved, but his 1m11.265s was not enough to overturn the McLaren driver’s advantage. The Mercedes driver’s performance nevertheless confirms the pace behind a session in which Mercedes controlled the Dutch GP sprint.
Antonelli leads the chasing pack
Antonelli had briefly moved to the top of the timing screens, but finished 0.133s off pole. Piastri qualified fourth, 0.142s behind his team-mate, while Ferrari filled the third row: Lewis Hamilton took fifth, 0.331s off the pace, and Charles Leclerc was sixth at 0.395s.
Max Verstappen was seventh, 0.455s behind Norris, and will share the fourth row with Liam Lawson, who is standing in for the injured Isack Hadjar. Gabriel Bortoleto placed Audi ninth, ahead of Racing Bulls rookie Arvid Lindblad, who completed his fifth consecutive Q3 appearance.
Pierre Gasly narrowly missed Q3 in 11th and will start alongside returning Racing Bulls driver Yuki Tsunoda. Nico Hulkenberg’s late improvement put him 13th, ahead of Franco Colapinto and Esteban Ocon.
Difficult qualifying for Williams, Aston Martin and Cadillac
Alex Albon was the final Q2 casualty, while Carlos Sainz suffered a second straight Q1 exit in 17th on the weekend he signed a Williams extension. Aston Martin’s progress with its upgraded engine and chassis was reflected by Fernando Alonso in 18th and Lance Stroll in 19th, despite earlier drivability problems.
Oliver Bearman qualified last among the established teams in 20th. Cadillac occupied the final two places, with Valtteri Bottas 21st and Sergio Perez 22nd. The team was a second away from Q2, while Perez was 1.7s behind Piastri’s Q1 benchmark.
Simone Scanu
He’s a software engineer with a deep passion for Formula 1 and motorsport. He co-founded Formula Live Pulse to make live telemetry and race insights accessible, visual, and easy to follow.