F1 Dutch Grand Prix: Norris Takes Pole; Russell and Antonelli Left Empty-Handed. Hamilton and Leclerc Trailing Far Behind

Lando Norris, driving for McLaren, secured pole position for the Dutch Grand Prix at the Zandvoort circuit, the twelfth round of the 2026 F1 World Championship. The reigning world champion set his fastest lap, in the decisive session, with a time of 1:11.163—102 thousandths faster than George Russell and 133 thousandths faster than Kimi Antonelli, who finished second and third, respectively, behind the wheel of their Mercedes.

Rounding out the second row is Oscar Piastri’s other McLaren, 142 thousandths behind his teammate. The Ferraris, on the other hand, struggled: Lewis Hamilton didn’t manage better than the fifth-fastest time, 331 thousandths slower than Norris’, while Charles Leclerc will start in sixth position, 395 thousandths behind the pole sitter.

Rounding out the top 10 in qualifying are Max Verstappen (Red Bull, +0.455), Liam Lawson (Red Bull, +0.570), Gabriel Bortoleto (Audi, +0.916), and Arvid Lindblad (Racing Bulls, +1.022). Eliminated after Q2 were Pierre Gasly (Alpine), Yuki Tsunoda (Racing Bulls), Nico Hülkenberg (Audi), Franco Colapinto (Alpine), Esteban Ocon (Haas), and Alex Albon (Williams). Meanwhile, Carlos Sainz (Williams), Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin), Lance Stroll (Aston Martin), Ollie Bearman (Haas), Valtteri Bottas (Cadillac), and Sergio Perez (Cadillac) did not advance past Q1.

Qualifying for Sunday’s race brings to a close a very eventful Saturday at Zandvoort, with the Sprint Race held late in the morning won by George Russell ahead of Charles Leclerc and Lando Norris, with Kimi Antonelli fourth and Oscar Piastri rounding out the top five, just ahead of Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton. In the standings, Antonelli leads the drivers’ championship with 224 points, ahead of Hamilton with 171 and Russell with 168, while in the constructors’ championship, Mercedes leads with 392 points, ahead of Ferrari with 316 and McLaren with 230.