Norris claims pole position in McLaren 1-2 at Italian GP qualifying
Red Bull Racing/Red Bull Content Pool
MONZA, Italy — Lando Norris continued his remarkable run of form by taking a sensational pole position for the Italian Grand Prix, leading a McLaren front-row lockout at Monza. In an intensely competitive qualifying session, Norris posted a blistering lap time of 1:19.327, edging out teammate Oscar Piastri by just 0.109 seconds to secure P1.
After setting the pace on the first runs of Q3, Norris managed to hold onto the top spot, despite a close fight among the top six drivers, all of whom were separated by less than two-tenths of a second. George Russell emerged as McLaren’s nearest competitor, qualifying P3 for Mercedes, as the grid closed in on Norris' impressive effort.
Ferrari, battling for home glory in front of the passionate Tifosi, saw Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz qualify fourth and fifth respectively. Lewis Hamilton slotted into P6, just behind his teammate Russell, as Mercedes aimed to challenge for podium finishes on race day.
In a surprising turn, Red Bull had a challenging session. Max Verstappen, the reigning world champion, struggled with a snap of oversteer on his first flying lap and couldn’t make significant improvements on his second run. The Dutchman had to settle for seventh, ahead of teammate Sergio Perez, who was unable to crack the top six, finishing P8.
Williams' Alex Albon and Haas’ Nico Hulkenberg rounded out the top 10, delivering solid performances in a tightly-packed grid.
Fernando Alonso narrowly missed out on Q3 by a mere hundredth of a second, with the Aston Martin driver set to start from P11. Daniel Ricciardo, the 2021 Monza race winner, also saw his day end in Q2, as he qualified in 12th for Red Bull, ahead of Haas driver Kevin Magnussen in P13.
Alpine’s struggles continued as both Pierre Gasly and Esteban Ocon were eliminated in Q2, leaving them in 14th and 15th on the grid.
Yuki Tsunoda was the first driver to fall in Q1, pushed out by his teammate Ricciardo's late improvement. The AlphaTauri driver will start in 16th place, ahead of Aston Martin’s Lance Stroll in 17th. Williams' rookie Franco Colapinto had a difficult debut, suffering a slight off during his first F1 qualifying session and finishing in P18.
It was a particularly frustrating day for Kick Sauber, as Valtteri Bottas and Zhou Guanyu struggled for pace, locking out the back row of the grid in 19th and 20th.
With a closely matched field and McLaren on top, all eyes will be on Sunday’s race to see if Norris and Piastri can convert their front-row dominance into victory, or if the chasing pack will mount a challenge in the heart of Ferrari territory.
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