McLaren driver set 1:31.824 and beat the championship leader by just 0.011s; Verstappen and Hamilton share the second row, while Gabriel Bortoleto starts 11th.
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Lando Norris secured pole position for the Spanish Grand Prix in Formula 1. In the first qualifying session in the history of Madring, held this Saturday (12), the McLaren driver set 1:31.824 on his last attempt and beat Kimi Antonelli by just 0.011s.
Max Verstappen finished third and will share the second row with Lewis Hamilton. Charles Leclerc was fifth, followed by George Russell, Oscar Piastri, Liam Lawson, Franco Colapinto, and Arvid Lindblad. Gabriel Bortoleto was eliminated in Q2 but starts 12th, immediately behind Nico Hülkenberg.
Qualifying
The first qualifying session in the history of Madring began with an open battle for pole position. Mercedes had led all previous sessions of the weekend: Russell led FP1, while Antonelli finished ahead in both FP2 and FP3.
However, the advantage was never comfortable. Ferrari, McLaren, and Verstappen remained close, and the last practice had Antonelli, Leclerc, Piastri, and Norris separated by just 0.236s.
Grid position also gained special importance. Throughout the sessions, drivers reported difficulties following other cars and completing overtakes on the new Madrid circuit.
Another factor was the asphalt evolution. The new surface gained grip quickly since Friday, increasing the importance of completing the lap at the right moment.
Hamilton still arrived at qualifying after huge work by Ferrari. The Briton crashed at Turn 22 in FP3, causing a long red flag, but the mechanics managed to repair the SF-26 in time.
Bearman was not so lucky. After the heavy crash that ended FP3, Haas could not get his car ready to participate in qualifying.
Q1: Bortoleto starts strong
When the green light appeared at 11 am, a long queue quickly formed at the pit exit.
Most drivers used soft tires, but there were different strategies. Leclerc and Verstappen initially appeared on mediums. Hamilton also completed his first attempt on the C3 compound.
Antonelli set one of the first important benchmarks with 1:33.566.
Verstappen responded with 1:33.744, while Russell set 1:34.376, far from his teammate after an apparently compromised attempt.
Leclerc appeared with 1:34.045 and Hamilton recorded 1:34.110.
Bortoleto started very well.
The Brazilian set 1:33.986 and provisionally appeared in third, again showing the potential that had taken Audi to the top 10 in FP3.
Lawson then surprised by taking the lead with 1:33.316.
Norris moved up to fourth and Verstappen improved to 1:33.381. Hamilton also found more performance and reached 1:33.531.
As the first sequence ended, most returned to the pits for adjustments before the decisive laps.
Antonelli accelerates at the end
With just over three minutes remaining, the drivers returned to the track.
At that moment, Alonso, Albon, Pérez, Bottas, Bearman, and Stroll occupied the elimination positions.
Stroll did not return for a final attempt. The driver had changed several components and was already destined to start from the back of the grid. Bearman, on the other hand, did not participate due to the damage suffered in FP3.
Antonelli lowered the benchmark to 1:33.267.
The track continued evolving. Tsunoda reached 1:34.311 and Gasly responded with 1:34.246. Colapinto set 1:33.963 and jumped to ninth.
After the chequered flag, Russell still completed his lap and took the lead at the end of Q1.
The eliminated were Sainz, Alonso, Pérez, Bottas, Bearman, and Stroll.
The race direction also informed that an incident involving Sainz and Bottas at Turn 7, for possible blocking, would be investigated after the session.
Bortoleto was guaranteed in Q2.
Q2: Verstappen changes the picture
The second phase began with drivers quickly returning to the circuit.
Antonelli put Mercedes in front with 1:32.603 and Russell set 1:32.850.
Leclerc opened with 1:33.072 and Hamilton recorded 1:33.195.
Hülkenberg did a good lap and provisionally put Audi in fifth with 1:33.352.
Verstappen, however, was very strong in the sectors.
The Dutchman completed the lap in 1:32.557, just 0.046s ahead of Antonelli, and took the lead.
Bortoleto found more difficulties.
The Brazilian set 1:33.798, appearing in 11th and about four tenths behind his Audi teammate.
With everyone back in the pits, Ferrari took a different approach and sent their drivers back to the track before the rivals.
Leclerc improved to 1:32.755. Hamilton was even faster and set 1:32.710, provisionally taking third place.
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Bortoleto improves but misses Q3
In the final minutes, the battle for survival began.
Antonelli improved to 1:32.591 but remained behind Verstappen.
Hülkenberg lowered his time to 1:33.223.
Colapinto then produced one of the great laps of the segment. The Argentine set 1:33.038 and jumped from 16th to eighth position.
Bortoleto also managed to improve significantly.
Gabriel completed his last attempt in 1:33.388, more than four tenths better than his first lap.
It still was not enough.
The Brazilian was in 11th at that moment and was eliminated.
Up front, Verstappen lowered the pace even more and set 1:32.431, ending Q2 as the fastest.
After the chequered flag, Lindblad recorded 1:33.204 and secured the last spot in Q3. Norris set 1:32.873 and Lawson impressed with 1:32.780.
Verstappen finished Q2 ahead of Antonelli, Hamilton, and Leclerc. Lawson, Russell, Norris, Colapinto, Piastri, and Lindblad also advanced.
Hülkenberg and Bortoleto missed out along with Ocon, Gasly, Tsunoda, and Albon.
Audi therefore could not repeat in Q3 the performance shown among the top ten during FP3.
Bortoleto ended his participation with 1:33.388, 0.165s behind Hülkenberg and 0.184s from Lindblad’s time, who set the cut-off.
Despite the elimination, the Brazilian would gain one position on the grid and will start 11th, immediately ahead of his teammate.
Q3: ten drivers for the first Madring pole
There were 13 minutes left to decide who would go down in history as the first pole-sitter of the new Madrid circuit.
The ten qualifiers quickly formed a line at the pit exit.
Norris received a black and white flag for not following race direction instructions but remained normally in the fight.
Antonelli started strong.
The Italian set 1:32.140 and provisionally took the lead.
Russell appeared with 1:32.265.
Hamilton then showed that the FP3 crash had not compromised his speed. The seven-time world champion set 1:32.079 and took first place from Antonelli.
Leclerc appeared fourth, while Norris was initially fifth.
Verstappen, who had led Q2, was fast but lost time in the third sector and finished his first attempt only fifth at that moment.
Piastri also did not immediately enter the fight for the lead.
After the first batch of laps, everyone returned to the pits.
New soft tires. One attempt remaining.
Antonelli sets a great lap, but Norris responds
When the cars returned to the circuit, Verstappen was the last to leave the pits.
It was the moment of truth. Antonelli first completed an extraordinary lap.
The championship leader set 1:31.835, becoming the first driver to break the 1:32 barrier and taking provisional pole.
Russell improved to 1:32.149. Leclerc also advanced, recording 1:32.019.
Hamilton responded almost immediately and set 1:32.013, only 0.006s ahead of the Ferrari teammate.
Lawson set 1:32.316. But the McLarens were still to come.
Then came Norris. The Briton completed his lap in 1:31.824.
By just eleven thousandths, Norris snatched pole position from Antonelli.
Piastri improved to 1:32.294 but did not threaten the front row.
Only Verstappen remained. The Dutchman crossed the line with 1:31.964.
It was enough to move up to third but not to beat Norris or Antonelli.
Lando Norris was the pole-sitter for the Spanish GP.
Front row decided by 0.011s
Norris thus secured the first pole position in the history of Madring with 1:31.824.
Antonelli, who led FP2 and FP3 and held provisional pole in the final seconds, was second by just 0.011s.
Verstappen starts third, sharing the second row with Hamilton.
Leclerc starts fifth, followed by Russell.
Piastri was only seventh with the second McLaren, while Lawson secured eighth. Colapinto and Lindblad complete the top ten.
Bortoleto starts 11th, just outside the points zone and in a position that keeps open the possibility to advance during the race.
Pole also puts Norris in a position to claim his third win of the 2026 season, after already winning two rounds.
After Mercedes led the three free practice sessions, it was McLaren who appeared at the decisive moment. And by a minimal difference: 0.011s separated Norris and Antonelli in the fight for the top spot at the first Spanish GP held at Madring.
Check the qualifying results of the 2026 Spanish GP:
1) Lando Norris (McLaren), 1:31.824
2) Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes), 1:31.835
3) Max Verstappen (Red Bull), 1:31.964
4) Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari), 1:32.013
5) Charles Leclerc (Ferrari), 1:32.019
6) George Russell (Mercedes), 1:32.149
7) Oscar Piastri (McLaren), 1:32.294
8) Liam Lawson (Red Bull), 1:32.316
9) Franco Colapinto (Alpine), 1:32.903
10) Arvid Lindblad (Racing Bulls), 1:33.041
11) Nico Hülkenberg (Audi), 1:33.223
12) Gabriel Bortoleto (Audi), 1:33.388
13) Esteban Ocon (Haas), 1:33.667
14) Pierre Gasly (Alpine), 1:33.753
15) Yuki Tsunoda (Racing Bulls), 1:34.084
16) Alexander Albon (Williams), 1:35.532
17) Carlos Sainz Jr. (Williams), 1:35.312
18) Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin), 1:35.388
19) Sergio Pérez (Cadillac), 1:35.913
20) Valtteri Bottas (Cadillac), 1:38.011
21) Oliver Bearman (Haas)
22) Lance Stroll (Aston Martin)
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