McLaren’s Lando Norris produced a storming last run to usurp championship leader Max Verstappen and take a crucial pole position at Formula 1’s Dutch Grand Prix.
The rain that had interrupted the action during FP3 had subsided and bright sunshine was beating down on the track as Lewis Hamilton headed the initial times in Q1.
Hamilton posted a 1:11.375s to go 0.002s faster than Lando Norris’ McLaren and then Verstappen, who went out later, slotted into third, 0.018s behind the Mercedes.
Ferrari expected a challenging weekend and it was materialising in that manner as Carlos Sainz was in the drop zone and his next lap placed him no higher than 12th.
Sergio Perez was striving to put an end to his wretched run prior to the break, but he was languishing in 11th and he was disgruntled when Hamilton impeded his tour.
Sainz was under pressure as Valtteri Bottas’ improvement relegated him back into the elimination places until the Spaniard responded to elevate his Ferrari to the top.
Charles Leclerc then made it a Ferrari 1-2 as he propelled his SF-24 into second place, but Russell and then Perez lowered the benchmark time at the sharp end in Q1.
But Daniel Ricciardo couldn’t extract the time he needed to progress through to Q2 as he exited along with Esteban Ocon, the two Sauber drivers and Logan Sargeant.
Sargeant’s substantial crash during the final practice session had put his participation in doubt, and Williams was unable to repair his car in time to head out on track.
The Ferrari duo were the sole drivers to venture out as Q2 began, with Leclerc ending up two-tenths quicker than team-mate Sainz as the other teams bided their time.
However, Leclerc wouldn’t remain at the top too long, as Piastri and also Norris demoted the Ferrari drivers down the order, with Verstappen three-tenths back in third.
Mercedes also appeared competitive over a single lap and a strong final sector saw Russell prop up less than a tenth behind Norris – but Hamilton was 0.503s slower.
Sainz was again under threat as the drivers returned to the pits with five minutes remaining in the second stage, with his 1:11.200s lap time putting him on the bubble.
Pierre Gasly in the sole remaining Alpine produced a cracking last attempt to rise to a provisional fifth, which was enough to book his passage through into the top 10.
However, Sainz and Hamilton ended up in the relegation zone in 11th and 12th, with RB’s Yuki Tsunoda and Haas’ Nico Hulkenberg and Kevin Magnussen also exiting.
That meant both Aston Martin drivers advanced along with Alex Albon, who utilised Williams’ updated FW46 car to again progress into the last segment at Zandvoort.
Meanwhile, McLaren remained 1-2 as the second session ended to earmark either Norris or Piastri in their improved MCL38 as the leading contenders to secure pole.
Norris again maintained the edge over his team-mate as the opening gambits in Q3 took place, the Briton ending up 0.119s faster than Piastri in the second McLaren.
Verstappen was 0.148s back in third place in the leading Red Bull, while Russell was under three-tenths behind the Dutchman in the single Mercedes competing in Q3.
Aston Martin elected to conduct one lap in the closing stage and the two split Leclerc’s Ferrari as Fernando Alonso went into the top five, with Lance Stroll in seventh.
Verstappen was able to improve his time on his last attempt and took over top spot, but the reigning F1 champion was powerless to stop Norris landing pole position.
Piastri couldn’t replicate Norris to usurp Verstappen, though, as he remained in third place, with Russell’s Mercedes in fourth. Perez in the sister Red Bull beat Leclerc.
Albon slotted his Williams car between the Aston Martin drivers to claim a season-best eighth on the grid, with Gasly in the Alpine bringing up the rear in 10th position.
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