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Norris takes Hungarian pole, Hamilton narrowly beaten
Lando Norris secured his first pole position of the season in Hungary, edging out Lewis Hamilton by the narrowest of margins in a chaotic qualifying session.
By Michael de Vries - 2026-07-25T15:56:15.000Z - 3 min read
Lando Norris secured his first pole position of the 2026 Formula 1 season at the Hungaroring. The reigning world champion beat Lewis Hamilton by a razor-thin margin of just 0.012 seconds. It also marks the first time this year that a driver outside Mercedes was fastest in qualifying for the main race.
Hamilton looked set for his tenth pole at this circuit for a long time after taking a tenth-of-a-second lead in the initial Q3 runs. However, his second attempt yielded no improvement, whereas Norris found extra speed. Hamilton still faces an investigation for potentially impeding Oscar Piastri, which ruined the other McLaren driver's lap. Charles Leclerc, Hamilton's teammate, finished third, two tenths behind the Briton.
It was a disappointing afternoon for Mercedes. Kimi Antonelli will start fourth, but is under FIA scrutiny for his actions during an active yellow flag. George Russell suffered even worse luck; a water leak disrupted his final run and forced him to stop the car in turn one past the finish line to prevent engine damage. Ultimately, he could manage no better than seventh place.
Red Bull Racing did not have a flawless session either. Max Verstappen spun during his final flying lap, relegating him to sixth position. His teammate Isack Hadjar managed to secure eighth place, despite a spin in Q2 that did not hamper his progress. Across the grid, drivers reported issues with the breaking-up track surface, particularly in the last two corners, where judging grip was especially tricky according to Norris.
A striking performance came from Fernando Alonso and Aston Martin. With a virtually complete revamp of the car, the Spaniard managed to reach Q2 for the first time this season. Although a sixteenth starting spot does not sound spectacular on paper, the relative gain in speed was significant: two seconds faster than what the team showed recently.
Alonso expressed relief afterwards. "I feel a certain relief; the team understood the car's weak points and this is the first step in the right direction," said the driver, who turns 45 next week. After two seasons filled with disappointing updates, there is now "a shift towards optimism" within the factory, according to the Spaniard.
Nevertheless, Alonso's future remains uncertain. This summer he faces the decision of whether to continue his career. Although he has confidence in the team's potential with technical partner Adrian Newey and Honda as engine supplier, he wonders whether success will come quickly enough for him personally. "Nobody should doubt Adrian Newey or our potential," he states, "it's a matter of time before we have the best chassis and the best engine, the only question is when."
Behind the top eight, Arvid Lindblad (Racing Bulls) and Nico Hülkenberg (Audi) completed the top ten. Liam Lawson missed out on Q3 in P11, followed by the Alpines of Pierre Gasly and Franco Colapinto. Gabriel Bortoleto (Audi) and Esteban Ocon (Haas), who reported potential floor damage, rounded out Q2.
Ollie Bearman (Haas) was the driver eliminated in P17 due to Alonso's improvement in Q1. Carlos Sainz (Williams) and Alex Albon (Williams) didn't get close to Q2. The Cadillacs of Valtteri Bottas and Sergio Pérez formed the back row, with Bottas faster than his teammate for the third consecutive race.