Dutch GP: Norris surges to pole ahead of Verstappen
McLaren's Lando Norris claimed an emphatic pole position for the Dutch Grand Prix with a stunning final qualifying lap that put him 0.356s ahead of local hero Max Verstappen in the Red Bull.
It's Norris' fourth career F1 pole, and the first time that Verstappen has missed out on pole at his home race since it returned to the calendar in 2021. Oscar Piastri and George Russell will line up on row two.
There had been shock eliminations for Mercedes' Lewis Hamilton and Ferrari's Carlos Sainz amid a flurry of fast laps at the end of Q2. Logan Sargeant was unable to take part in the session after his huge smash in final practice.
Although the rain that had blighted final practice had moved on, it was still far from ideal beach weather at Zandvoort as the drivers embarked on qualifying. While it was now dry and warm with some blue patches in the sky, the wind was back to keep everyone on their toes.
Q1: Perez quickest as Ricciardo and Ocon miss the cut
First out on track was Haas' Nico Hulkenberg, who had hit the wall on Friday and also had a close encounter with the barrier this morning before Logan Sargeant's far more emphatic mishap. The stricken Williams was still in pieces and unable to take part in the session.
It was Aston Martin's Lance Stroll who set the initial pace with a time of 1:11.832s putting him ahead of Alex Albon in the remaining Williams, but then Oscar Piastri leapt ahead by almost three tenths. He was duly displaced by Lewis Hamilton's 1:11.375s, and the Mercedes/McLaren battle for supremacy was back on.
Norris missed out on snatching the top spot by 0.002s. There had been disappointing first efforts for Charles Leclerc (sixth), Sergio Perez (seventh) and George Russell (tenth). And Carlos Sainz was only 17th in what was his first spell on soft tyres, having been hampered by the weather and a gearbox problem during practice.
Max Verstappen was last to complete a lap. It put him third, splitting the two McLarens. With everyone (bar Sargeant) having completed at least one timed lap, those at risk of elimination were the RBs of Daniel Ricciardo and Yuki Tsunoda, and the Saubers of Valtteri Bottas and Zhou Guanyu.
The final minutes saw drivers queueing impatiently to start their last push laps. Tsunoda and Ricciardo both improved, briefly imperilling Sainz who responded in style by going quickest of anyone. The next riposte came from Russell, who up to this point had complained of a lack of grip but now found it in spades to go quickest.
Perez had been unhappy with what he perceived as impeding by Hamilton on an earlier run, but he got the last laugh when he went top by half a tenth from Russell. On the flip side, those left failing to make the cut were Ricciardo and Alpine's Esteban Ocon, together with the two luckless Saubers.
Q2: Norris and Piastri take charge as Sainz and Hamilton miss out on final round
Dark clouds were beginning to gather as the drivers headed out for the second round, but the rain continued to hold off despite reports from drivers of rain in the air. Not hanging around just in case, the two Ferraris headed out to set the first lap times on used tyres with Leclerc going 0.170s quicker than Sainz.
A few minutes later Piastri was back on top, quicker than Leclerc by over a second. The onset of the big names on fresh tyres soon saw Norris go top by 0.009s from Piastri with Russell third ahead of Verstappen, Hamilton and Leclerc.
That left Hulkenberg and Kevin Magnussen in the bottom five at risk of elimination along with Gasly, Tsunoda and Albon, but there was still plenty of time to get take fresh tyres for one last push. Despite the slide in the weather, everyone left it as late as they dared before setting off.
Norris, Piastri, Russell and Verstappen all felt confident enough to stay in the pits. Stroll, Leclerc and Albon made big improvements and moved up to P4, P6 and P7 respectively pushing Verstappen to a worrying eighth. It certainly caught out Sainz and Hamilton, who failed to make up time and missed the cut along with Tsunoda, Hulkenberg and Magnussen.
Q3: Norris powers to pole ahead of Verstappen, Piastri holds on to third from Russell
The rain was still holding off as the cars streamed back out on track for the final round. The first time on the board of 1:10.193s went to Piastri, but Norris soon improved on that by more than a tenth to take provisional pole. Verstappen was third ahead of Russell and Leclerc and Gasly slowest of those to set a time.
Stroll, Perez, Albon and Alonso all sat out this initial flurry of fliers. As the initial six pitted for fresh rubber, Aston Martin ushered Stroll and Alonso out onto a clear track but neither were able to take advantage or get within half a second of Norris' time. "I cannot do more than this" was Alonso's forlorn report over the team radio as he settled into P5.
Norris could and did do better, extending his lead with a stunning new lap of 1:09.673s to keep him a comprehensive 0.356s ahead of Verstappen's final offer. Piastri couldn't match them but remained third ahead of Russell, with Perez then slotting into fifth ahead of Leclerc and Alonso. Albon also put in a good run to claim eighth ahead of Stroll and Gasly.
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