Norris pulls off ‘masterpiece’ lap to snatch pole in Madrid

Team McLaren-Mercedes’ Lando Norris (right) celebrates after securing pole position during qualifying at the Madring circuit in Madrid on September 12, 2026, ahead of the Spanish Formula One Grand Prix. — AFP pic

First Published: Sunday, 13 Sep 2026 12:25 PM MYT

MADRID, Sept 13 — Lando Norris produced a “masterpiece” on Saturday as he claimed pole position for McLaren with a stunning lap to beat championship leader Kimi Antonelli of Mercedes in a tense qualifying session for the Spanish Grand Prix.

World champion Norris, who had missed most of second practice on Friday due to an enforced gearbox change, topped the times in one minute and 31.824 seconds to beat the 20-year-old Italian by just 0.011 seconds.

Max Verstappen of Red Bull was third, 0.140 seconds adrift, ahead of Ferrari’s Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc with George Russell sixth in the second Mercedes at the new ultra-demanding, high-risk hybrid Madring circuit.

“It was a masterpiece and one of the best laps of his life,” said McLaren team chief Andrea Stella after seeing Norris defy the odds on a track he had described as “like Monaco on steroids”.

Norris said: “I’m shocked and bit surprised, but my God it was probably one of the best laps I have ever done in my career so I’m very, very happy, very proud and very happy for the team.

“It was one of those laps where everything came together. I had a good idea of what I wanted to do, but it was whether my brain would let me do it on the last lap and everything worked perfectly.

“The adrenaline was high on the last lap. It is just one where you have got to relax, just let it all flow. It is so easy to get tense around here — there’s a lot of walls that come out at you pretty quickly!

“It was pretty much perfect bar the last corner when I thought I was in the wall and the boys would be repairing the car tonight! But I achieved it and put a big smile on my face.”

Positive signs for Verstappen 

Antonelli, who leads Russell by 66 points in the championship and Norris, who is fourth, by 96, said: “I thought it was a good lap, but then this guy just snatched it away. Good job to them!

“On my side, it was a very intense qualifying — difficult to get the balance right with the track being so hot, but the lap was pretty clean.”

Verstappen said he was pleased with his session’s work on a track he had forecast to be extremely challenging.

“For us, it was a very good qualifying. For me, to be third is a great result. The car felt quite decent in qualifying and I could attack corners the way I liked so for us I think this qualifying was a good result.”

Oscar Piastri was seventh in the second McLaren ahead of Liam Lawson in the second Red Bull, Alpine’s Franco Colapinto and Racing Bulls rookie Arvid Lindblad.

Norris’s pole was his third this year and his 19th overall, giving him a great chance of a third win of the season on a barrier-lined circuit with few overtaking opportunities. He has won both times he has started on pole this season — in Hungary and the Netherlands.

It also endorsed his reputation as an expert on tight street tracks, having claimed his first pole at Sochi in Russia in 2021 and secured poles on similar tracks like the Hungaroring, Monaco, Zandvoort, Las Vegas and Singapore. — AFP