Madrid F1 Qualifying Recap: Lando Norris Grabs Surprise Pole for McLaren in Spain

Lando Norris, the reigning Formula 1 world champion, will start Sunday's Spanish Grand Prix from pole position after a stunning final lap in qualifying on Saturday in Madrid. The McLaren driver had struggled for much of the weekend, but he pulled off a near-perfect lap when it mattered most. His time of 1:31.824 seconds beat championship leader Kimi Antonelli of Mercedes by just one hundredth of a second — the tiniest margin possible in F1 racing.

This is Norris's third pole position of the season. He also started from pole in Budapest and Zandvoort, and he went on to win both of those races. Fans will be watching closely to see if he can make it three wins from three poles this Sunday in Spain.

The weekend did not start smoothly for Norris or McLaren. He missed almost all of the second practice session on Friday because of a gearbox problem with his car. Even in Saturday's final practice session, the team struggled to find a good setup, and Ferrari and Red Bull looked like the stronger teams heading into qualifying.

But Norris turned things around when it counted. On his very last lap in the final round of qualifying, he put together a stunning drive to go fastest of all. McLaren team principal Andrea Stella called the lap a 'masterpiece' when speaking to Sky Sports. Stella also pointed out that Norris actually lost three tenths of a second after making a small mistake in the last corner — meaning the lap could have been even quicker.

Behind Norris, Red Bull's Max Verstappen will line up third on the grid. Ferrari's Lewis Hamilton had briefly held provisional pole after the first set of fast laps in Q3, but he was pushed back to fourth by the end of qualifying. His Ferrari teammate Charles Leclerc will start fifth, while George Russell and Oscar Piastri qualified sixth and seventh — a disappointing result for both Mercedes and McLaren in the final session.

Rounding out the top ten are Liam Lawson, Franco Colapinto, and Arvid Lindblad. Colapinto had a scary moment during Q2, when his car snapped sideways going through the banked La Monumental corner. He managed to save it and avoid a crash, which was a huge relief for his team and the fans watching.

Two drivers were unable to take part in qualifying at all. Haas driver Ollie Bearman crashed during the final practice session and could not compete in qualifying as a result. Lance Stroll of Aston Martin also failed to set a lap time, with his team saying a suspected water pressure issue stopped his car from running properly. Both drivers will face a tough start to Sunday's race from the very back of the grid.