Latest news with #SprintPole
7NEWS
25-07-2025
- Automotive
- 7NEWS
Australia's Formula One ace Oscar Piastri takes pole at Belgian Grand Prix with fastest lap in history
Australia's Formula One leader Oscar Piastri took pole position for the Saturday sprint by nearly half a second at the Belgian Grand Prix while McLaren teammate and title rival Lando Norris qualified third. Red Bull's reigning champion Max Verstappen will join Piastri on the front row for the first race since Christian Horner was dismissed as team boss and replaced with Laurent Mekies. Piastri lapped the Spa-Francorchamps circuit with a best time of one minute 40.510 seconds, 0.477 seconds quicker than Verstappen and 0.618 clear of Norris. He was at risk of being eliminated after straying off track in the second part of the session but bounced back to pip Verstappen, who split the two dominant McLarens by relegating Norris to third, .618 off the pace. The flying lap set a new record, too, seven tenths faster than Lewis Hamilton's record from 2020. 'The car's been mega all day,' said Piastri, who claimed his first sprint pole of the campaign. 'This is a track I love, it's my favourite one of the year and maybe that gave me a couple of extra tenths (of a second).' The Melburnian, who also set the pace in earlier practice, is eight points clear at the top after 12 of 24 rounds. 'It was a good lap. A little scare in SQ2 with the lap deletion. But thanks to the team, the car has been great and this is a track I love. Maybe that gave me a couple of extra tenths,' he said. 'The car has been in a good window since lap one and it is a track I always enjoy coming to. 'It is nice to get a result today. 'The Red Bulls were very quick in a straight line in practice. That makes life difficult in terms of it being the worst track to have pole position.' There was a lot of love for Piastri on social media following his electrifying effort, with F1 fans stunned by his performance. 'OH. MY. WORD. Oscar Piastri's sprint pole position laptime is OVER SEVEN TENTHS FASTER than the previous lap record … set by Lewis Hamilton in the MERCEDES W11,' Formula 1 God said on X (formerly Twitter). And the F1 Republic said: 'An unstoppable lap from the Aussie secured Sprint Pole ahead of Verstappen and Norris.' F1 presenter Matt Gallagher said: 'Oscar Piastri that is a PHENOMENAL lap ... nearly half a second clear!!!' While a fan said: 'That Piastri lap…. standing up and applauding ... that's my driver.' Ferrari's Charles Leclerc starts fourth but teammate Lewis Hamilton will line up 18th after a difficult afternoon for the seven-times world champion, whose most recent win came at the same circuit last year with Mercedes. The Briton spun on his last flying lap while on course to go through, with the suspicion falling on a failure of the car's rear axle. George Russell, who finished first last year for Mercedes but was then disqualified for an underweight car, also struggled and qualified 13th. McLaren team chief Andrea Stella told Sky Sports: 'That was a pretty amazing lap by Oscar, he capitalised on everything available in the car. 'An almost perfect session from Oscar, except for the lap deletion in SQ2 which gave us a bit of a moment on the pit wall!'
Yahoo
21-03-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
Lewis Hamilton ‘gobsmacked' to land sprint pole after Ferrari debut disaster
A 'gobsmacked' Lewis Hamilton said he was in shock after he landed his first pole position in Ferrari colours for Saturday's sprint race in China. Hamilton, 40, rolled back the years to kickstart his Ferrari career with top spot on the grid for the 19-lap dash to the chequered flag. Hamilton's six wins in China is more than any driver in history and his pole lap – the fastest ever seen in Shanghai – was greeted with huge roars by the crowd. A first P1 in red ❤️#F1Sprint #ChineseGP @ScuderiaFerrari — Formula 1 (@F1) March 21, 2025 For the seven-time world champion, it came just five days after he finished only 10th on his full debut for Ferrari following a performance he described as a disaster. 'I am just a bit gobsmacked and taken back by it,' said Hamilton, who edged out Red Bull's Max Verstappen by just 0.018 seconds. 'I didn't know when we would get to this position. The last race was a disaster for us. 'But I came here with aggression and wanting to put car into a great place and I have started with a much better feeling in the car. 'I cannot believe we are at the front ahead of a McLaren which has been so fast through testing, the last race, and even today. 'I'm a bit in shock. And wow, holy crap, my first. Even though it is not the main pole it gives me real inspiration tomorrow to see if we can find more performance and compete again.' Ferrari were expected to be McLaren's closest challengers this year, but they suffered a miserable start in Melbourne with Charles Leclerc only two places better off than Hamilton. Leclerc will start from fourth place in China after it was the turn for McLaren to flatter to deceive. Oscar Piastri could manage only third, less than a tenth back from Hamilton, with championship leader Lando Norris a distant sixth. GRANDE LEWIS!!! 🔥@lewishamilton takes his first Sprint Pole of 2025!! — Scuderia Ferrari HP (@ScuderiaFerrari) March 21, 2025 Norris impressed to win last weekend's rain-hit race but got out of shape at Turn 13 on his first hot lap in Q3 and then abandoned his second lap after carrying too much speed through the penultimate corner. 'We were not quick enough and I struggled with the car, ' said Norris. 'Just too many mistakes and our car was too difficult to drive. 'I cannot make the car perfect but this was me pushing too much. I need to back off a little bit. The car is still good and in a good window, maybe not good enough for pole, but we can definitely go for it.' George Russell will start one place ahead of Norris in fifth. After he crashed out on his Red Bull debut, Liam Lawson endured another appearance to forget when he qualified 20th and last. But there was better news for British rookie Ollie Bearman after he out-qualified experienced Haas team-mate Esteban Ocon to line up from 12th, six places ahead of the Frenchman. The sprint race takes place on Saturday morning, prior to qualifying which will determine the grid for Sunday's main event.
