Lando Norris claims pole position at Belgian Grand Prix as McLaren star keeps world championship hopes alive
It was a fillip for the Briton – he drives under the flag of the country in which he was born and grew up – after he finished only third in the sprint race earlier in the day.
That contest was won by Red Bull's Max Verstappen, with Norris's team-mate Oscar Piastri second.
But Norris, watched by mum Cisca, put himself ahead of Piastri in qualifying by 0.085sec, the two McLarens on the front row.
It should be noted that this track is one of the hardest to hold position from pole and there may yet be an advantage in starting where Piastri will rather than where Norris does.
Charles Leclerc qualified third for Ferrari and Verstappen fourth.
In contrast to Leclerc's relative delight, Lewis Hamilton's horror weekend hit a new low when his time was deleted for exceeding track limits in the first qualifying session.
The Ferrari man had been lying seventh but was plunged to 16th after planting all four wheels off the track at Raidillon, the fourth corner. 'Unacceptable,' he said.
What a disappointing couple of days for the seven-time world champion! He had spun off at the close of qualifying for the sprint race at the Bus Stop Chicane on Friday afternoon. He started that contest 18th and improved to 15th over the short format.
In qualifying proper, he was told by race engineer Riccardo Adami of his fate. 'Time deleted,' said Adami. Another inquest begins.
The leading Brit behind Norris was Mercedes' George Russell, who qualified sixth in contrast to team-mate Kimi Antonelli's 18th.
Ollie Bearman felt he was impeded at the end of his out lap in Q2 by Red Bull's Yuki Tsunoda. It was a shame for the young Briton because he was impressive up until that point. He will start 12th for Haas.
An awful day for Aston Martin, with their two cars stuck to the bottom of the field: Lance Stroll last, Fernando Alonso a place above. Adrian Newey's pencil must be on overdrive.
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