#F1 #Qualifying: @LandoNorris storms to #AustrianGP pole.
Lando Norris, #4, McLaren Formula 1 Team, Mercedes, MCL39, Qualifying, Formula 1 MSC Cruises Austrian Grand Prix 2025, Red Bull Ring, Spielberg, Austria. Image credit to Mark Thompson/Getty Images. Norris Austrian GP Pole, 2025 Austrian GP Qualifying, Austrian GP Qualifying Results, F1 Austrian GP Qualifying.
Norris Austrian GP Pole – McLaren’s Lando Norris stormed to pole position in qualifying at the Austrian GP by over half-a-second ahead of Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc and team-mate Oscar Piastri who had to abandon his final flyer due to Alpine’s Pierre Gasly’s spin, which brought out a brief yellow flag.
This was Norris’s 12th-career pole and a crucial one in his battle for the World Driver’s Championship with team-mate Piastri and major threat and defending world champion Max Verstappen.
In Q3, the initial flying laps saw Alpine’s Pierre Gasly the first to post a 1:05.649 but was beaten by Mercedes’ Andrea Kimi Antonelli’s 1:05.276, then this was beaten by Piastri’s 1:04.554 then this was ousted by team-mate Norris’s 1:04.268 for the Briton to go provisional pole.
Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc was next and split the McLaren’s to go second and 0.224 seconds off Norris’s effort whilst Sir Lewis Hamilton and Mercedes’ George Russell slotted into fourth and fifth respectively and ahead of Verstappen.
The final hot-laps saw Verstappen abandon his flyer as Piastri also aborted his final hot-lap after Gasly suffered a spin at the final corner after running into the gravel trap.
Norris improved with three purples to post a blistering 1:03.971 to take pole position by 0.521 seconds over Leclerc with Piastri a further 0.583 seconds off in third.
Ferrari’s Hamilton took fourth and in-front of Russell who placed fifth and Racing Bull’s Liam Lawson who starts the Austrian Grand Prix in an impressive sixth.
Verstappen starts Red Bull’s home Grand Prix down in seventh and ahead of Sauber’s Gabriel Bortoleto who was eighth as Mercedes’ Antonelli and the aforementioned Gasly rounded out the top ten.
In the second qualifying stage, which was topped by Norris, the session was stopped with five minutes and 42 seconds remaining after grass caught fire on the main-straight after Ferrari’s Hamilton ran across the grass upon completing his flying tour.
After the fire was put out and the session resumed, the final 15 drivers done just one flyer in Q2.
A late improvement from Gasly knocked out Aston Martin’s Fernando Alonso meaning the double world champion qualified 11th for tomorrow’s Austrian GP and ahead of Williams’ Alexander Albon who improved only 12th on his last run.
RB’s Isack Hadjar followed in 13th and in-front of Alpine’s Franco Colapinto who took 14th and Haas’s Oliver Bearman who was the slowest of the Q2 runners in 15th.
In the opening segment, which was topped by Norris, a late improvement from Russell eliminated Aston Martin’s Lance Stroll meaning the Canadian will start the Austrian GP 16th.
MoneyGram Haas F1 Team’s Esteban Ocon took 17th and ahead of Red Bull’s Yuki Tsunoda who qualified 18th at his outfit’s home Grand Prix.
Williams’ Carlos Sainz endured a difficult qualifying wounding up a low-19th as Sauber’s Nico Hulkenberg brought up the rear.
You can see the full Formula 1 MSC Cruises Austrian Grand Prix 2025 Qualifying Results Classification at the link: https://www.formula1.com/en/results/2025/races/1264/austria/qualifying
2025 Austrian GP Qualifying – The Top Three
2025 Austrian GP Pole Position – Lando Norris, #4, McLaren Formula 1 Team-Mercedes, MCL39 – 1:03.971:
“It was a good lap, that’s for sure. It was just little bit by little bit, my Q3 run one was good, but I knew there were some little places to improve. Very happy, a good day, a good weekend for me so hopefully I can keep it up. It is a long season. I savour this moment, it is pleasing for myself, but it is a long race tomorrow.”
2nd Place – Charles Leclerc, #16, Scuderia Ferrari, SF-25 – 1:04.492:
“I’m very pleased. It has been a long time since we started on the front row. It has been a difficult season overall, but the tam kept pushing, we brought some new parts this weekend that have made a difference. We normally have a better car in the race than Qualifying, so hopefully we can put some pressure on McLaren tomorrow.”
3rd Place – Oscar Piastri, #81, McLaren Formula 1 Team-Mercedes, MCL39 – 1:04.554:
“I didn’t get to start [my lap] because of Gasly spinning in the last corner. Lando has been quick all weekend so it would have been tough, but we had the pace to start on the front row.”
