Lando Norris secures pole position at Belgian GP as Hamilton faces setback
This puts Norris in a prime position to attempt to close the gap to Piastri in the championship once more, following his victory at Silverstone a fortnight ago. However, as Piastri experienced in the Sprint, maintaining the lead on the first lap at this venue can be challenging due to the lengthy flat-out section after the first corner.
Nevertheless, Piastri expressed his "disappointment" at missing out on pole. In contrast, Charles Leclerc, who finished third, seemed thrilled as he confessed he "didn't expect" to qualify so high with Ferrari struggling for speed.
But, in the other red car, it was another brutal day for Lewis Hamilton who, for the second qualifying session this weekend, failed to make it out of the bottom five. His fastest lap time was deleted for a track limits violation which means the seven-time Formula 1 champion will start Sunday's race from 16th on the grid.
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A farcical start to qualifying saw Nico Hulkenberg try to but into the queue that had formed at the end of the pit lane to begin the session, only to make contact with the Aston Martin of Lance Stroll who was already in the fast lane. The Sauber driver needed a new front wing as a result of the damage, while the Canadian needed to return to the pits for his mechanics to fix some damage on his car.
It may have had an effect on Stroll's efforts as he could manage only dead last place, one spot below team-mate Fernando Alonso as Aston Martin suffered a wretched session – both slowest overall. Kimi Antonelli was also disappointed to find himself 18th, having failed to make it out of the bottom five in both qualifying sessions at Spa-Francorchamps.
Franco Colapinto was last for most of Q1 but at least managed to jump up to 17th with his final effort, while rookie Gabriel Bortoleto was handed a reprieve when Hamilton saw his best lap time deleted and was dropped to 16th, allowing the Sauber driver to progress.
Bortoleto took full advantage with a strong performance in Q2 which booked his place in the top 10. His team-mate Hulkenberg, the podium hero of Silverstone two weeks ago, will have to pull off something special again if he is to score more big points after qualifying 14th, going faster only than Carlos Sainz in the second part of the session.
Both Haas cars and Pierre Gasly in the Alpine were the other victims of Q2, while Bortoleto ended up settling for 10th on the grid. Racing Bulls marked another strong qualifying with Isack Hadjar and Liam Lawson eighth and ninth respectively.
Yuki Tsunoda showed a vastly improved performance to not only make it into Q3 but qualify seventh, giving himself a good chance to finally score well in his Red Bull. He is three places behind Max Verstappen, the two team-mates separated by George Russell in sixth and a very impressive performance from Alex Albon who ensured a top-five start in his Williams.
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