Oscar Piastri has edged out his McLaren team-mate and title rival Lando Norris to secure pole position for the Dutch Grand Prix at Zandvoort in a nail-biting qualifying session. The Australian driver delivered a spectacular lap, beating Norris by a razor-thin margin of just 0.012 seconds to claim his fifth pole of the season.
Norris, who has won three of the last four races, has closed the championship gap to within nine points of Piastri as the season approaches its final 10 rounds. Despite his recent momentum and dominating performance in all three practice sessions, Norris could not surpass Piastri when it mattered most.
“It was close, it has been close the whole weekend. Disappointed not to be on pole but it was close,” Norris said. “I’m in a good position. We will have some fun tomorrow.”
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The qualifying battle between McLaren’s drivers was fierce, with both exchanging fastest times throughout. Norris set a new lap record in Q2, only for Piastri to beat it in his first Q3 run by 12 thousandths of a second. Norris was unable to improve on his next attempt, setting the stage for a thrilling race start.
Behind the McLaren pair, home favorite and four-time world champion Max Verstappen qualified third for Red Bull, 0.263 seconds off the pole pace. Verstappen faces a challenging task to keep pace with the dominant McLarens while energizing the passionate Dutch crowd.
Impressively, Isack Hadjar secured fourth place for Racing Bulls, with George Russell in fifth for Mercedes. Meanwhile, Ferrari’s Lewis Hamilton qualified seventh, struggling to find pace compared to his rivals. Hamilton, a seven-time world champion, expressed his determination to enjoy driving again after a challenging Hungarian Grand Prix, though Ferrari’s pace deficit was clear this weekend.
A notable incident marred qualifying when Aston Martin’s Lance Stroll crashed into the barriers early in Q1 after losing control at the start. Despite showing potential throughout practice, attempts to repair his car failed, ending his qualifying session prematurely.
As the Dutch Grand Prix approaches, anticipation builds for a compelling race, especially between the McLaren teammates battling for the championship lead.