Lando Norris takes Dutch GP pole at Zandvoort, ahead of Russell and Antonelli
Lando Norris claimed pole position for the Dutch Grand Prix at Zandvoort on 22 August 2026, producing a final-lap effort that put him ahead of George Russell and Kimi Antonelli. Norris's lap came after a weekend in which he had only managed third in the sprint race, which Russell won earlier.
Norris's McLaren team-mate Oscar Piastri qualified fourth, with Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc fifth and sixth for Ferrari and Max Verstappen seventh for Red Bull. McLaren brought another swathe of developments to Zandvoort, and Norris described his pole lap as the "best lap of my life" while complaining the car had been struggling for pace after the sprint.
On the final runs in Q3 Norris first posted a 1min 11.344sec lap and then improved to a 1:11.263 to secure pole, finishing roughly a tenth clear of Russell and Antonelli. Russell had been closest to Norris on the early attempt, more than a tenth down, and Antonelli initially sat only fifth before improving as rain began to spit.
As the light rain started Antonelli was improving and briefly led the times while Russell showed strong pace through the opening sector, but Norris produced a further improvement on his earlier benchmark to seal top spot. The session ended with Norris a tenth up on both Russell and Antonelli.
Russell had earlier converted pole into a comfortable sprint race victory, controlling the 24-lap contest from the front with little positional change among the leaders. There were only two position changes inside the top 10 during the sprint — Antonelli up to fourth and Leclerc to second — with Leclerc passing a struggling Norris late in that race.
Norris criticised McLaren's slow-speed performance after the sprint, saying: "We don’t have the pace in general, slow-speed corners we struggle so much compared to others. There is nothing we can do. The car is very good in high-speed and nowhere near good enough in slow-speed. The upgrades have all worked and they allowed me to be P3 today but we need more if we want to be fighting for a championship." Russell, reflecting on his own weekend, said: "The results haven’t been there but I think the underlying performance hasn’t been as bad as results have shown. When it comes to driving, just not thinking too much when I’m in the car and just trying to drive as fast as possible, really, and trusting my instincts of what the car balance needs."
After Russell took victory in the sprint and Antonelli finished fourth, the Briton now trails his teammate by 56 points in third place in the championship, with Hamilton 53 points back in second place. Norris's pole is his second at the Dutch GP and the 18th of his career, and with Piastri having taken the win here last year and Norris in 2024 the team could be in position to make it three in a row.