Lando Norris Shocks Kimi Antonelli to Secure Madring’s First Pole Position

Lando Norris has etched his name into Madring’s history forever. The champion is the first pole-sitter in the history of the new Madrid street circuit after a qualifying session in which he snatched pole from Kimi Antonelli by a mere eleven thousandths, stopping the clock at 1:31.824. Norris owns Madring’s first pole.

Spanish drivers will need chaos if they want to score points. Both Fernando Alonso and Carlos Sainz were eliminated in Q1, despite both having come close to advancing to the next round in a surprisingly clean session, with no red flags and hardly any scares, something that did occur in the free practice sessions.

Lewis Hamilton’s Accident in Free Practice

Nobody saw it coming. Lando Norris was having a modest qualifying in Madring, but his last lap was so magical that it earned him Madring’s first pole position by a margin of eleven thousandths. Norris will aim on Sunday to secure his third win in four races and continue to pressure the championship.

Norris stole pole away from Kimi Antonelli just as he was savoring it. The world championship leader was first after his superb final lap, but now he will start from the dirty side with two Miuras behind: Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton will be teammates in the second row of the grid. And that the Briton has had his own difficulties.

Hamilton crashed his Ferrari in the morning free practice, leaving his front end badly damaged. But he arrived in time for qualifying and will start fourth, just ahead of his teammate, Charles Leclerc, in a spicy showdown after what happened at Monza and the back-and-forth of statements.

George Russell remains mired in misfortune, managing only sixth, three-tenths off pole. The Briton has at least surpassed Oscar Piastri and Liam Lawson, the other two members of Formula 1’s bourgeoisie. The one who deserves a big round of applause this Saturday in Madring is the Argentine Franco Colapinto, ninth on the grid.

Colapinto made it into Q3, something Pierre Gasly, his Alpine team-mate, could not do. Also present was Arvid Lindblad, who will start tenth. The day’s big disaster is Oliver Bearman, who wrecked his Haas in the final minute of free practice and with the mechanics not having time to repair it for qualifying, so he did not take part.

The Spaniards will need chaos to snatch anything in Madring. Both Fernando Alonso and Carlos Sainz were eliminated in Q1, both within less than a tenth of Alexander Albon, who set the cut. Alonso will start eighteenth, one place behind Sainz. If they score, it will mean the race has been eventful.

Spain F1 GP 2026 Qualifying Results

Images | Williams, McLaren