Spanish GP 2026: Norris takes pole by 0.011 seconds at Madring
Lando Norris will start the first Formula 1 race ever held at the Madring circuit from pole position after beating championship leader Andrea Kimi Antonelli by 0.011 seconds in qualifying for the 2026 Spanish Grand Prix. After stepping out of the McLaren, Norris said he was genuinely shocked by the result and admitted he had been convinced he was heading into the barriers at the final corner before saving the lap.
Norris edges Antonelli by 0.011 seconds in Q3
Pole position came on Norris's final timed lap in Q3. He improved by around seven and a half tenths of a second on that run to beat Antonelli, who leads the drivers' championship, by the narrowest of margins.
"I'm in shock. I'm a little bit surprised to be here. It was probably one of the best laps I've ever done in my career," Norris said after stepping out of the McLaren.
The lap that delivered pole
Norris acknowledged the improvement itself was not something to celebrate uncritically. "That's not something to be proud of. But the fact that I did it in Q3, when it matters the most, is something I should be proud of," he added.
He described a lap where almost every corner went to plan. "It was just a perfect lap. At every corner I did what I wanted, apart from the last one." He highlighted the first and second chicanes as corners where he pushed harder than at any earlier point in qualifying because he knew exactly where the limit was. "There was just a certain set of corners where I knew exactly what I wanted to do. I knew the limit, I just had trouble getting to it, and I just pushed into it as hard as I wanted," he said.
The moment at the final corner
The rhythm broke at the last corner, where Norris ran wide and was certain he was heading into the barriers before he gathered the car and held onto the time that gave him pole.
"At the last corner I had a little moment. I think I got a little bit excited in the car and overcooked the entry. Honestly, I thought I was in the wall," he said. "Luckily it's a short run to Turn 1."
Asked how he pulled it off, Norris was playful. "It's a secret. A secret that even I don't know. I have a good feeling with the car." He also noted he had ground to make up after Friday, having not completed a single lap in FP2.
Starting positions for the inaugural Madring race
Norris will lead the field away from pole for the first Formula 1 race on the Madrid circuit. Antonelli, the current drivers' championship leader, lines up alongside on the front row, 0.011 seconds adrift.