Lando Norris takes Dutch Grand Prix pole in Zandvoort as Max Verstappen qualifies seventh

Norris secures pole as weather threatens

Lando Norris claimed pole position for the Dutch Grand Prix at Circuit Zandvoort, clocking a lap time of 1:11.163 in his McLaren. Mercedes driver George Russell qualified second, one tenth of a second behind Norris, while teammate Kimi Antonelli completed the top three. Oscar Piastri placed fourth in the second McLaren. Qualifying ran across three knockout phases lasting 18, 15, and 13 minutes, with the six slowest cars eliminated in each of the first two segments. Threatening clouds gathered over the coastal circuit ahead of the final session, prompting all ten Q3 contenders to exit the pit lane immediately to set representative laptimes before rain arrived. Although light rain fell across the dunes in the closing minutes, track conditions allowed for quick runs before cars returned to the pits.

McLaren turn around form after morning struggles

Norris noted following qualifying that McLaren had rectified balance problems experienced earlier on Saturday during sprint running. The British driver, whose mother is Belgian, addressed the local crowd in Dutch over the team radio after securing his second career Zandvoort pole following his win in 2024.

We turned it around well, earlier today we were struggling. All credits to the team.

Norris praised the spectator atmosphere across the sand dunes as the circuit prepares for its final scheduled Grand Prix. Fans packed into the grandstands and donned rain ponchos as dark clouds loomed over the final shootout.

This is one of the best events. The fans make a lot of noise and are enthusiastic. Hopefully we put on a good show tomorrow, because we are going to miss everyone here.

Verstappen and Red Bull drop to fourth row

Local favourite Max Verstappen qualified seventh for Red Bull, finishing 0.45 seconds behind Norris. Ferrari drivers Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton both completed late flying laps to push Verstappen from fifth down to seventh on the timing screens. Red Bull struggled for raw pace against McLaren, Mercedes, and Ferrari throughout the afternoon. Verstappen recovered from twelfth in Q1 to third in Q2, but could not challenge the top four in Q3. Verstappen will start alongside temporary teammate Liam Lawson on row four of the grid. During Q2, Verstappen left his garage alongside Russell, later dismissing the incident over team radio.

George is probably crying on the radio, but there was nothing unsafe about it.

Historical advantage and race outlook

The driver starting on pole position has won each of the past five Dutch Grands Prix held at Zandvoort. Verstappen won from pole in 2021, 2022, and 2023, while Norris took victory from first on the grid in 2024 and Piastri did so in 2025. In the opening session, Carlos Sainz, Fernando Alonso, Lance Stroll, Oliver Bearman, Valtteri Bottas, and Sergio Perez were eliminated, while Hamilton had a brief excursion through the gravel trap at Tarzan corner. Russell also went through the gravel during his final effort in Q3. Pierre Gasly, Yuki Tsunoda, Nico Hulkenberg, Franco Colapinto, Esteban Ocon, and Alex Albon failed to progress through Q2. The final edition of the Grand Prix starts on Sunday at 15:00 local time.