Lando Norris Beats Lewis Hamilton by 12 Thousandths of a Second in Hungary as Fernando Alonso Delights Aston Martin

Lando Norris will start from pole position at the Hungarian Grand Prix. The British driver has snatched the top spot from Lewis Hamilton by a margin of just 12 thousandths of a second, in what was not only the tightest qualifying of the year but also the first time a Mercedes did not take pole. Norris’s 1:17.207 made the difference.

Many eyes were on Fernando Alonso’s upgraded Aston Martin, and indeed Adrian Newey did not disappoint. Alonso managed to reach Q2, beating not only the Cadillacs and Williams but even one of the Haas cars. A strong base on which Aston Martin must build.

The first pole of the season not by Mercedes

Lando Norris has achieved his first pole position as Formula 1 World Champion. The Brit will start first at Hungaroring by a margin of only twelve thousandths of a second over Lewis Hamilton, who had looked set for a strong result but could not improve on his final attempt while Norris nailed the lap.

The Norris pole is the first pole of the season not achieved by a Mercedes driver. Hungaroring has been a McLaren favorite circuit in recent seasons, and the upgrades introduced in this Grand Prix seem to have paid off. At least for Norris, because Oscar Piastri finished fifth.

In any case, Ferrari is the favorite for the win. Hamilton starts second, but Charles Leclerc is third, and the red cars appear to have the best pace in practice. In addition to Norris, the main threat will be Kimi Antonelli, the World Championship leader, who will start from fourth on the grid.

The big question is what Antonelli would have done without the late yellow flag caused by Max Verstappen’s spin, which will leave him starting sixth. In any case, he did not look capable of reaching pole. George Russell, another driver affected by the yellow flag, will also start seventh, next to Isack Hadjar, eighth.

Q3 saw the rookie Arvid Lindblad advance, who will start ninth, and Nico Hülkenberg’s Audi, aiming for his first points from tenth. The day’s great joy is that Fernando Alonso made it into Q2, showing that Aston Martin’s upgrades have worked. The downside was Lance Stroll’s final lap miss.

Alonso will start sixteenth in Hungary. The downside of Aston Martin’s upgrade is that Williams is sinking deeper into the pit, to the point that James Vowles had to apologize to his drivers over the radio. Carlos Sainz will start eighteenth, just ahead of his teammate, and Williams currently seems to be the second-worst team in Formula 1.

Hungarian Grand Prix 2026 Qualifying Results

Images | Red Bull, McLaren