Provisional pole for Lando Norris

New York Times

2 days ago

Catch up on the Formula 1 action as Oscar Piastri got the better of Lando Norris in Barcelona qualifying Getty Images
McLaren's Oscar Piastri has qualified on pole position at the Spanish Grand Prix.
The Australian, who leads the F1 World Driver's Championship standings, beat his team-mate Lando Norris as McLaren secured a one-two for tomorrow's race.
Max Verstappen qualified third, ahead of British duo George Russell and Lewis Hamilton. Email: [e-mail]
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F1 Spanish GP qualifying: Oscar Piastri secures pole as McLaren dominates Connections: Sports Edition Spot the pattern. Connect the terms Find the hidden link between sports terms Getty Images
Incredible lap from Lando Norris! He sets a blistering pace through the second sector, losing a smidge of time in the third but still manages to beat Oscar Piastri by a measly 0.017!
Charles Leclerc, meanwhile, moves into fourth, ahead of Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton. Getty Images
Wow! A 1:11.836 to go top!
George Russell moves into second with a superb 1:12.075, ahead of Max Verstappen in third.
Despite the dark clouds growing near the circuit, the team radars aren't showing anything due to hit the track itself through Q3. I think we'll get to the end without showers.
Can anybody stop McLaren here?! Getty Images
I think Alex Albon and Williams will be pretty happy with 11th there. Albon gave his car up for Williams young driver Victor Martins in FP1, and then was sidelined by a suspected brake issue through much of Q3, meaning he had just one flying lap completed on Saturday heading into qualifying. At a track that really does not suit Williams, to be so close to reaching Q3 is a decent return. 11. Alex Albon , Williams
, Williams 12. Gabriel Bortoleto , Sauber
, Sauber 13. Liam Lawson , Racing Bulls
, Racing Bulls 14. Lance Stroll , Aston Martin
, Aston Martin 15. Ollie Bearman , Haas
, Haas 16. Nico Hulkenberg , Sauber
, Sauber 17. Esteban Ocon , Haas
, Haas 18. Carlos Sainz , Williams
, Williams 19. Franco Colapinto , Alpine
, Alpine 20. Yuki Tsunoda, Red Bull
And as Yuki Tsunoda slumps to last, Isack Hadjar puts in another great qualifying display for Racing Bulls to reach Q3, off the heels of finishing sixth in Monaco last weekend. He's putting in a good case for future consideration for that second Red Bull seat, surely... Getty Images
The young Racing Bulls driver looked to be in trouble but produced a fine lap to go sixth.
Ollie Bearman is the last man out on the track … but fails to significantly improve his time and stays in P15.
Alex Albon, Gabriel Bortoleto, Liam Lawson and Lance Stroll join him in exiting Q2.
His last flying lap is only good enough for 8th.
Lance Stroll is out. He's currently sat in 13th.
The top five are all in the pits. Just about everybody else is on an out lap. Getty Images
The drivers in the danger zone are: Gabriel Bortoleto, Liam Lawson, Alex Albon, Lance Stroll and Oliver Bearman.
Oscar Piastri still on top at this stage, but Lando Norris again had to pass a slower car at Turn 12, which will have contributed to the 0.058 second gap to the other McLaren.
They are so close right now, with Piastri edging it in the first sector, Norris mighty in sector two. Max Verstappen actually has the quickest time in sector three, with a big 0.36 second gap to the leaders. Getty Images
Lando Norris goes quickest with a 1:12.056. But Lewis Hamilton and Oscar Piastri are both on flying laps and both go quicker through the first sector…
Hamilton, however, loses time in the third and final sector and goes third, behind Norris and Max Verstappen.
Piastri then nudges them all down a spot with a blistering 1:11.998.
Max Verstappen has set the quickest lap so far in Q2: a 1:12.358.
He's followed by Gabriel Bortoleto, Liam Lawson and Alex Albon. Getty Images
Looks like a big 0.2 second gap between the McLaren drivers in Q1, but Lando Norris had a big moment three corners from home when he passed a slower car and had to step off the gas to save a big snap. There's surely more time to come from him heading into Q2.
Fernando Alonso is the first out onto the track. Getty Images
Oscar Piastri, once again, was the fastest man of the session.
He was followed by Max Verstappen, Lando Norris, George Russell and Kimi Antonelli. Getty Images 16. Nico Hulkenberg , Sauber
, Sauber 17. Esteban Ocon , Haas
, Haas 18. Carlos Sainz , Williams
, Williams 19. Franco Colapinto , Alpine
, Alpine 20. Yuki Tsunoda, Red Bull
Oh dear, that's not a good result for Yuki Tsunoda. The second Red Bull 'curse' shows zero sign of abating right now. He's plum last in qualifying, even if he is 'only' six-tenths of a second off Verstappen's lap time up in P2.