Lando Norris beats Kimi Antonelli by 0.011 seconds for Spanish Grand Prix pole in Madrid
The McLaren driver edged Kimi Antonelli by 11 milliseconds to take top spot for the inaugural race at the Madring circuit, while Carlos Sainz and Fernando Alonso were eliminated in Q1.
Norris secures pole on Madring debut
Lando Norris recorded a lap time of 1:31.824 in the final minute of qualifying to take pole position at the newly built Madring semi-urban circuit. The McLaren driver secured his nineteenth career pole and his third of the 2026 season on the 5.416-kilometer track in Madrid. The result came after a session where four different teams held the top spot across the segments. Mercedes led the first round, Max Verstappen topped the second segment, and Lewis Hamilton set the early benchmark in the final shootout before Norris completed his lap.
Norris spoke about his final effort after stepping out of the car.
I am in shock, very surprised. I think it was one of the best laps of my life. I had it clear in my head, but you had to do it.
Tight margins at the front of the grid
Championship leader Kimi Antonelli missed pole position by 0.011 seconds and will start alongside Norris on the front row. Max Verstappen qualified third for Red Bull, finishing 0.140 seconds behind Norris, while Lewis Hamilton took fourth for Ferrari at a deficit of 0.289 seconds. Charles Leclerc qualified fifth in the second Ferrari, with George Russell placing sixth for Mercedes. The top four positions on the grid belong to four different constructors, separated by under three tenths of a second.
- Lando Norris
- 0 s
- Kimi Antonelli
- 0.011 s
- Max Verstappen
- 0.14 s
- Lewis Hamilton
- 0.289 s
Antonelli holds the championship lead with 267 points, sitting 66 points ahead of Russell and 76 points ahead of Hamilton. Formula One returned to Madrid for the first time in 35 years for round 14 of the championship. The 57-lap race begins on Sunday at 15:00.
Practice difficulties and setup adjustments
The pole position followed a difficult start to the weekend for Norris, who missed track time during the second practice session because of a gearbox issue. Mercedes had led all three practice sessions leading into qualifying, with Russell fastest in the first session and Antonelli pacing the second and third. McLaren adjusted the setup on the MCL40 to improve low-speed corner performance following developments introduced earlier in the season in Hungary.
- George Russell sets the fastest time for Mercedes.
- Kimi Antonelli leads as Lando Norris suffers a gearbox issue.
- Antonelli paces the session before Oliver Bearman suffers an accident.
- Mercedes leads while Carlos Sainz and Fernando Alonso are eliminated.
- Max Verstappen tops the timesheet 0.046 seconds ahead of Antonelli.
- Lando Norris takes pole position with a 1:31.824 lap.
Norris had advanced from the first qualifying segment in fifth place after using two sets of soft tires, finishing four tenths of a second behind Verstappen. In the second segment, Verstappen led the field with a lap 0.046 seconds quicker than Antonelli, who had posted a 1:32.603.
Early exits for Spanish drivers in opening round
Carlos Sainz and Fernando Alonso were eliminated in the opening qualifying round in front of their home crowd. Sainz missed advancement to the second segment by 0.005 seconds behind his Williams teammate Alexander Albon, leaving him 17th on the grid. Alonso qualified 18th for Aston Martin, finishing 0.081 seconds adrift of the cutoff. Both drivers failed to capitalize on the open grid spot left by Oliver Bearman, who did not participate in qualifying following an accident in the third practice session.
The second qualifying round saw the elimination of both Audi cars, Esteban Ocon, Pierre Gasly, Yuki Tsunoda, and Albon, while Franco Colapinto and Arvid Lindblad advanced into the top ten shootout.
