Lando Norris claimed pole position for the 2026 Dutch Grand Prix at Zandvoort, beating George Russell and Andrea Kimi Antonelli as Ferrari had to settle for the third row of the grid. Lewis Hamilton qualified fifth for Ferrari, with Charles Leclerc sixth, as McLaren and Mercedes occupied the first two rows ahead of Sunday’s race.
Oscar Piastri completed the second row in fourth place behind the two Mercedes drivers, while Lando Norris delivered the decisive lap in Q3 with a 1:11.163. The result marked a strong response from McLaren after the team had appeared less convincing during the Sprint, while Ferrari was unable to reproduce the same level of front-running competitiveness when the battle for Grand Prix pole reached its decisive phase.
2026 Dutch GP qualifying begins with Lewis Hamilton Q1 scare
After Saturday’s Sprint Race at Zandvoort, qualifying for Sunday’s Grand Prix began at 16:00 Italian time. George Russell entered the session among the leading favourites after his performances in both Sprint Qualifying and the Sprint itself, as Mercedes looked to put the W17 back at the front of the grid.
Q1 opened with extremely tight margins, with drivers separated by thousandths as the track continuously improved and lap times fell with each run. Every driver used the Soft compound as grip levels increased around Zandvoort.
The first major scare involved Lewis Hamilton. The Ferrari driver suffered a heavy lock-up under braking and went straight into the gravel at Turn 1, but he was able to continue and ultimately progressed comfortably through the opening phase.
When the chequered flag fell, Carlos Sainz, Fernando Alonso, Lance Stroll, Oliver Bearman, Valtteri Bottas and Sergio Perez were eliminated, ending their hopes of fighting for pole position in Q1.
McLaren finds its pace again in Q2
Q2 passed without major incidents and highlighted a much stronger McLaren than had been seen during the Sprint Race. Around Zandvoort, the Woking team appeared to have rediscovered the sharpness and outright performance that had been missing earlier on Saturday.
Oscar Piastri initially moved to the top of the timesheets, but team-mate Lando Norris then produced the stronger lap to take control. McLaren’s improved qualifying form followed a weekend in which its MCL40 had shown contrasting strengths and weaknesses compared with Ferrari and Mercedes in the Dutch GP Sprint analysis.
Pierre Gasly, Yuki Tsunoda, Nico Hülkenberg, Franco Colapinto, Esteban Ocon and Alexander Albon were eliminated at the end of Q2 and missed out on the top-10 shootout.
Lando Norris beats Mercedes to Dutch GP pole
Q3 began with the threat of rain hanging over the final minutes of the session, adding another element of uncertainty to the fight for pole position. Lando Norris continued to improve his benchmark and became locked in a battle separated by tiny margins against the two Mercedes cars.
The McLaren driver ultimately found the lap required to take pole, stopping the clock at 1:11.163. George Russell finished second, 0.102 seconds behind, while Andrea Kimi Antonelli secured third place at a deficit of 0.133 seconds. Oscar Piastri was only nine thousandths further back in fourth.
Ferrari found the going considerably tougher. Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc were unable to insert themselves into the fight for the front row despite the encouraging pace the SF-26 had shown earlier in the weekend. The team had arrived at Zandvoort with an important SF-26 floor and rear-wing upgrade package, but in Grand Prix qualifying the final gap to pole remained more than three tenths.
Lewis Hamilton secured fifth place, 0.331 seconds away from Lando Norris, while Charles Leclerc qualified sixth at +0.395. That leaves the two Ferraris side by side on the third row for Sunday’s Dutch Grand Prix.
2026 Dutch GP qualifying results
- Lando Norris – McLaren – 1:11.163
- George Russell – Mercedes – +0.102
- Andrea Kimi Antonelli – Mercedes – +0.133
- Oscar Piastri – McLaren – +0.142
- Lewis Hamilton – Ferrari – +0.331
- Charles Leclerc – Ferrari – +0.395
- Max Verstappen – Red Bull – +0.455
- Liam Lawson – Red Bull – +0.570
- Gabriel Bortoleto – Audi – +0.916
- Arvid Lindblad – Racing Bulls – +1.022
- Pierre Gasly – Alpine – 1:12.616
- Yuki Tsunoda – Racing Bulls – 1:12.627
- Nico Hülkenberg – Audi – 1:12.797
- Franco Colapinto – Alpine – 1:12.800
- Esteban Ocon – Haas – 1:13.137
- Alexander Albon – Williams – 1:13.182
- Carlos Sainz – Williams – 1:13.574
- Fernando Alonso – Aston Martin – 1:13.650
- Lance Stroll – Aston Martin – 1:13.818
- Oliver Bearman – Haas – 1:13.826
- Valtteri Bottas – Cadillac – 1:14.371
- Sergio Perez – Cadillac – 1:14.600
Lando Norris will therefore start Sunday’s Dutch Grand Prix from pole alongside George Russell, with Andrea Kimi Antonelli and Oscar Piastri forming the second row. Ferrari faces a more difficult starting position after its strong Sprint showing, with Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc needing to make progress from fifth and sixth respectively at a circuit where overtaking has already proved challenging.
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