#F1 #Qualifying: @LandoNorris beats @GeorgeRussell63 to #DutchGP pole.
Lando Norris, #1, McLaren Mastercard Formula 1 Team-Mercedes, MCL40, arrives in Parc Ferma after claiming his 17th-career pole position, Qualifying, Formula 1 Heineken Dutch Grand Prix 2026, Circuit Zandvoort, Zandvoort, Netherlands. Image credit to Rudy Carezzevoli/Getty Images. Norris Dutch GP Pole, 2026 Dutch GP Qualifying, F1 Dutch GP Qualifying Results, 2026 Formula 1 Dutch GP Qualifying Results.
Norris Dutch GP Pole – Reigning World Champion Lando Norris beat Mercedes’ George Russell to pole position for tomorrow’s Dutch GP as championship leader Andrea Kimi Antonelli qualified third in the other Silver Arrow.
This was Norris’s 17th-career pole and the Briton sounded less convinced despite the MCL40 having solid one-lap pace.
In Q3, the initial flyers saw championship leader Antonelli lead the pack out and after another warmup lap, Norris set the benchmark of a 1:11.344.
Piastri pushed into second on a 1:11.577 with three personal bests as Antonelli moved up into third and was 0.331 down on Norris whilst Russell slotted into second with a 1:11.495 with the best sector three time.
Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc ended up fourth with three personal bests posting a 1:11.667 whilst home favourite Max Verstappen put his Red Bull sixth and two-thousandths of a second off Antonelli.
The final hot-laps saw Audi’s Gabriel Bortoleto post a 1:12079 as Antonelli took provisional pole on a 1:11.296 with the best final sector.
Norris jumped to P1 with a 1:11.163 as Russell posted a 1:11.265 to be 0.102 seconds off the Briton whilst Piastri ended up fourth setting a 1:11.305 to be 0.142 seconds off his team-mate who took pole.
Leclerc with two personal bests moved into fifth ahead of Verstappen with a 1:11.558 whilst Hamilton pipped his team-mate on a 1:11.494.
The other Red Bull of Liam Lawson took eighth as Audi’s Bortoleto and Racing Bulls’ Arvid Lindblad completed the top ten.
In the middle segment, which was topped by Norris, a late improvement from Alpine’s Pierre Gasly was not enough and the Frenchman missed out on a Q3 appearance by 0.191 seconds and will start tomorrow’s Dutch Grand Prix outside the top ten in 11th place.
Racing Bulls’ Yuki Tsunoda ended up 12th and in-front of Audi’s Nico Hulkenberg who took 13th and the other Alpine A526 entry of Franco Colapinto who placed 14th.
Haas’s Esteban Ocon and Williams’ Alexander Albon were the slowest of the Q2 eliminatees in 15th and 16th.
In the opening qualifying stage, which was topped by Piastri, Williams’ Carlos Sainz improved but just missed out on a Q2 appearance by a slim 0.022 seconds meaning the Spaniard will start tomorrow’s Dutch GP 17th.
Aston Martin duo Fernando Alonso and Lance Stroll qualified 18th and 19th respectively and in-front of Haas’s Oliver Bearman who took a low-20th.
Cadillac pairing Valtteri Bottas and Sergio Perez brought up the rear.
You can see the full Formula 1 Heineken Dutch Grand Prix 2026 Qualifying Results Classification at the link: FORMULA 1 HEINEKEN DUTCH GRAND PRIX 2026 – QUALIFYING
2026 Dutch GP Qualifying – The Top Three
2026 Dutch GP Pole Position – Lando Norris, #1, McLaren Mastercard Formula 1 Team-Mercedes, MCL40 – 1:11.163:
“It doesn’t get any better, a little surprised honestly. A decent lap, I was pushing as you’ve seen how close it is, every one-hundredth can make a difference. A good turnaround from earlier where I felt we struggled a little bit. We had to try something as what we had before wasn’t enough, so we made some small changes to give me some more confidence.”
2nd Place – George Russell, #63, Mercedes AMG Petronas Formula 1 Team, F1 W17 – 1:11.265:
“Lando did a great job so congrats to him and McLaren. It was a strong session, I thought we had it there to fight for pole but P2 is good. I feel in a good place, I feel myself again which is important. It was a real joy for us all to drive [here].”
3rd Place – Andrea Kimi Antonelli, #12, Mercedes AMG Petronas Formula 1 Team, F1 W17 – 1:11.296:
“A difficult session for me, always on the back foot and on the last lap did a mistake into Turn 1, lost a couple of tenths and that took away the chance for pole. A shame for that, but all to play for tomorrow.”
@GeorgeRussell63 cruises to #DutchGP #Sprint victory. #F1
#F1 #SprintQualifying: @GeorgeRussell63 pips @LandoNorris to #DutchGP Sprint pole.
#F1 #DutchGP #FP1: #Antonelli quickest ahead of @LandoNorris, @GeorgeRussell63.
#F1 @Heineken #DutchGP 2026 Preview. #Formula1 #DutchGrandPrix
