Belgian GP: Lando Norris beats Oscar Piastri to pole position at Spa-Francorchamps as Lewis Hamilton suffers Q1 elimination
Lando Norris hit back with pole position at Spa-Francorchamps from McLaren team-mate Oscar Piastri; Lewis Hamilton will start in 16th after another nightmare qualifying; watch the Belgian Grand Prix at 2pm on Sunday with build-up from 12.30pm, live on Sky Sports F1
Sunday 27 July 2025 07:09, UK
Lando Norris beat McLaren team-mate Oscar Piastri by less than one tenth of a second in Qualifying for the Belgian Grand Prix as Lewis Hamilton was left to rue a mistake which left him in 16th.
Norris turned the tables on Piastri, who had been ahead of him all weekend, with a stunning first lap in Q3 to secure his fourth pole of the season and provide the perfect opportunity to make inroads into his nine-point deficit in the Drivers' Championship.
Charles Leclerc produced an equally impressive lap to take third from Saturday's earlier Sprint winner Max Verstappen, whose set-up change for Qualifying for more downforce did not allow him to challenge the McLarens.
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Hamilton was knocked out in Q1 for the second successive day, after he was eliminated in the first part of Sprint Qualifying on Friday. Hamilton thought he was safely through but his best lap was deleted for cutting Turn 4 at Raidillon, which put him down to 16th.
Kimi Antonelli was also bumped out in Q1 again in 18th but Mercedes team-mate George Russell qualified sixth, just behind Williams' Alex Albon.
Yuki Tsunoda enjoyed his best Red Bull qualifying in seventh, ahead of Racing Bulls' Isack Hadjar and Liam Lawson as Sauber's Gabriel Bortoleto impressed in 10th.
Norris hits back when it counts
Norris said he was "not too fussed" when he was third in Sprint Qualifying behind Verstappen and Piastri, a position he held for the Sprint itself.
After Norris topped Q1, the McLaren duo were set for a big pole fight and the British driver delivered when it counted with a 1:40.562 which Piastri was unable to beat twice.
Even Norris himself could not go faster in his last run and if the rain that's forecast for Sunday arrives, track position will be key on the opening lap and pole position will be an advantage, unlike the Sprint where Verstappen blasted past Piastri on the Kemmel Straight.
"It was a decent lap, so happy," said Norris, who is looking for a hat-trick of wins.
"Everyone was pretty worried after yesterday. I wasn't even that far off, it was just a couple of little issues that we had. So I was confident after yesterday and confident coming into today so it was nice to see I could get back to the top.
"Three tenths is just slipstream and not being first out of the pit lane, so it was nothing to worry about. But people like to make a lot of things up, but I felt good.
"The car has been flying all weekend, Oscar has been doing a good job all weekend, so we are pushing each other a lot."
The threat of rain led Red Bull to give Verstappen more downforce so he did not suffer the same handling issues as he did at the British Grand Prix earlier this month.
But, the set-up change did not work as he qualified 0.341s behind pole-sitter Piastri and was even beaten by Leclerc, who was surprised to be third.
"I was actually hoping it would help the driving feeling, just maybe a bit draggy, but it didn't do that. It was just a bit more draggy and not the right balance," said Verstappen.
"So it's a bit weird and something we need to look into because it felt like that whole qualifying I couldn't really push and around here at Spa you need the be committed on entry if you want the car to rotate and I couldn't do that."
"I would have liked to have started third, that was probably our position today, but Q3 didn't come together."
Hamilton's 'unacceptable' qualifying
Hamilton's wretched Spa-Francorchamps weekend got even worse as his final lap in Q1 was deleted for a track limits violation at Raidillon at the top of Eau Rouge.
He had gone seventh, with a lap just slower than team-mate Leclerc, but his lap deletion put him down to 16th a day after he was knocked out in the first part of Sprint Qualifying when he spun at the final chicane - an incident which now appears to be a driver error.
"From my side, another mistake. I have to look internally," said Hamilton, who suffered his first Q1 elimination in normal Qualifying as a Ferrari driver.
"I have to apologise to my team because it's unacceptable to be out in both Q1s. It's a very poor performance from myself."
Ferrari have brought a new rear suspension to Spa-Francorchamps which Hamilton says was the final major upgrade for this year.
It is unclear whether the upgrade has affected Hamilton's confidence and he will hope to end the weekend on a high on Sunday.
Sky Sports F1's live Belgian GP schedule
Sunday July 27
7.25am: F3 Feature Race
8.55am: F2 Feature Race
10.40am: Porsche Supercup Race
12.30pm: Grand Prix Sunday: Belgian GP build-up*
2pm: THE BELGIAN GRAND PRIX*
4pm: Chequered flag: Belgian GP reaction*
5pm: Ted's Notebook
*also live on Sky Sports Main Event
The 2025 Formula 1 season resumes with the Belgian Grand Prix on Sunday with lights out at 2pm, live on Sky Sports F1. Stream Sky Sports with NOW - no contract, cancel anytime
