MIAMI, FLORIDA - MAY 01: Lando Norris of Great Britain driving the (1) McLaren MCL40 Mercedes on track during practice ahead of the F1 Grand Prix of Miami at Miami International Autodrome on May 01, 2026 in Miami, Florida.
(Photo by Steven Tee/LAT Images)

Lando Norris Outduels Lewis Hamilton To Take Hungary Pole; Hamilton Later Dropped to Fifth

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Lando Norris swept qualifying at the Hungaroring on July 25, topping each session and narrowly edging Lewis Hamilton to secure the pole for the AWS Hungarian Grand Prix.

It is the reigning champion’s first pole of the season.

Norris backed up his FP3-topping morning run by going fastest in all three qualifying sessions, and needed his best on his final run of the day to wrest the top spot from Hamilton, who had risen to provisional pole with a fast first run in Q3.

Hamilton, who had secured second, earned a three-place grid penalty for impeding Oscar Piastri when Piastri started his flying lap.

Charles Leclerc was third, with championship leader Kimi Antonelli fourth. Oscar Piastri rounded out the top five.

Antonelli also found himself dropped in the running order after stewards assessed him a three-place grid penalty for track limits violations.

Q3

Norris was again on a heater, nailing the final two sectors to post a time of 1:17.320, only to see it topped by Hamilton, who was a tenth quicker. Antonelli was fourth quickest after the first runs, with George Russell only able to go seventh fastest.

In the dramatic last-run shootout, Hamilton was first out and did not improve on his first time. Max Verstappen spun coming out of the final corner, and Antonelli and Leclerc were unable to beat Hamilton’s time. But Norris again was a force, knocking Hamilton off the pole by a miniscule .012 seconds

Pos.Driver No.DriverTeamTime from Leader
1.1Lando NorrisMcLaren1:17.207m
2.44Lewis HamiltonFerrari+0.012s
3.16Charles LeclercFerrari+0.238s
4.63Kimi AntonelliMercedes+0.272s
5.81Oscar PiastriMcLaren+0.477s
6.33Max VerstappenRed Bull+0.518s
7.81George RussellMercedes+
8.6Isack HadjarRacing Bulls+0.649s
9.41Arvid LindbladRacing Bulls+1.074s
10.27Nico HulkenbergAudi1.479s

Q2

Fernando Alonso briefly topped Q2, but only because he was first out. The hard and inevitable reality hit moments later, when Verstappen laid down a lap nearly three seconds better.

Hamilton took the lead with a fast 1:17.931 midway through the session, and the Ferrari driver was confident he could find more time in subsequent laps. Hadjar shockingly tipped Hamilton’s time by .05 seconds after first spinning on his previous effort.

Antonelli found himself under pressure, after having his first Q2 lap deleted for track limits. The Italian responded with the eighth-fastest effort to advance.

Norris again topped the charts with a 1:17.456.

Pos.Driver No.DriverTeamTime from Advancing
11.30Liam LawsonRacing Bulls+1.309s
12.10Pierre GaslyAlpine+1.388s
13.43Franco ColapintoAlpine+1.571s
14.5Gabriel BortoletoAudi+1.649s
15.31Esteban OconHaas+2.278s
16.14Fernando AlonsoAston Martin+2.352s

Q1

Norris set the pace early with a 1:18.277 lap on his first effort, and the time help to top the session, with Antonelli second, nearly three tenths back. 

The Aston Martins of Alonso and Lance Stroll, each sporting 16 new upgrades and an exponentially higher number of prayers, found a modicum of success, with Alonso successfully advancing out of Q1, albeit nearly two seconds slower than Norris. It was Alonso’s first trip to Q2 of the season.

Pos.Driver No.DriverTeamTime from Advancing
17.87Oliver BearmanHaas+1.956s
18.55Carlos SainzWilliams+2.344s
19.23Alex AlbonWilliams+2.381s
20.18Lance StrollAston Martin+2.382s
21.77Valtteri BottasCadillac+2.609s
22.11Sergio PerezCadillac+3.045s

The F1 AWS Hungarian Grand Prix will begin on Sunday, July 26, at 9 a.m. ET. Television coverage in the United States will be provided by Apple TV+.

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