McLaren’s Lando Norris celebrated what he called the finest qualifying lap of his career after outpacing Red Bull rival and Formula One leader Max Verstappen to secure pole position at the U.S. Grand Prix on Saturday.
Verstappen, who leads Norris by 54 points in the championship after triumphing in the earlier sprint at Austin’s Circuit of the Americas, might have surpassed him but was hindered when George Russell crashed his Mercedes in the final moments, causing everyone to slow down. Fortunately, Russell emerged unscathed from his car. Norris had recorded an impressive provisional pole time of one minute 32.330 seconds on his initial fast lap, with Verstappen trailing by just 0.031 seconds. Although Red Bull’s triple world champion appeared faster on his subsequent attempt, Russell’s mishap in the last sector triggered double yellow caution flags. This pole marked Norris’s sixth in his career, fourth in the last five races, and his first in the United States, leaving him elated.
“It all came together seamlessly. It was an exceptionally strong lap. I’d confidently say it was probably the best of my career,” remarked the 24-year-old. “This was exactly what we needed to achieve. Throughout the weekend, we’ve lagged behind, lacking the pace of the Ferraris or Red Bulls. So I had to step up, and today I managed that. It was a superb lap and a great way to begin tomorrow’s race.” Team principal Andrea Stella concurred, describing it as “almost flawless.”
Verstappen, who triumphed in Austin last year, broke his eight-race losing streak with a sprint victory, a streak that dated back to Austria in June, during which time Norris had been closing the gap.
“During the first lap in Q3 (the final segment), I lost quite a bit of time,” commented the Dutch driver. “I knew we had another chance, but unfortunately, I couldn’t complete the lap. Otherwise, I believe we had a really strong opportunity.” Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz finished second in the sprint with Norris in third, while teammate Charles Leclerc secured the second row.
“We’ve made a positive stride forward. I was three-tenths ahead on my lap going into Turn 16 with just two corners remaining, but it’s easy to say now,” remarked the Spaniard. McLaren’s Oscar Piastri and Russell will occupy the third row, while Alpine’s Pierre Gasly and Aston Martin’s Fernando Alonso secured seventh and eighth positions. Gasly was called to the stewards after the session due to an unsafe release from the garage. Haas’ Kevin Magnussen and Red Bull’s Sergio Perez, who are still grappling with form, rounded out the top 10.
HAMILTON SHOCK
Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes’ seven-time world champion and the most successful F1 driver in history, delivered an unexpected early shock by qualifying 19th. “During the sprint, we experienced a failure from the formation lap with the front suspension. I had that issue throughout the sprint race, making balance really challenging,” stated Hamilton. “The car was dreadful in qualifying. I should probably start from the pit lane; otherwise, I won’t get anywhere from my current position.” Russell, who had qualified second on Friday for the sprint, mentioned that his car caught him off guard approaching the penultimate corner.
“I might have been pushing too hard, but I’m quite disappointed with the damage to the car and all the repairs needed tonight,” he remarked. “Yesterday, both Lewis and I were contenders for pole position, but today we didn’t make an impact.” New Zealander Liam Lawson clocked the third-fastest time in the initial session, yet the RB driver will start from the back due to a grid penalty handed down from his predecessor, Daniel Ricciardo.
