Lando Norris Claims Dutch GP Pole with 'Best Lap of My Life' as Kimi Antonelli Takes Third

Lando Norris secured pole position for Sunday's Dutch Grand Prix after producing what he called “the best lap of my life” during qualifying at Zandvoort. The teenage McLaren driver, who triumphed last time out in Hungary before the Formula One summer break for his first win of the season, will start at the front of the grid alongside George Russell with his Mercedes teammate and title-race leader Kimi Antonelli third.

Norris pipped Russell by 0.102 seconds just as rain started to fall at the seaside track as the Briton also secured his second successive pole after doing the same at the Hungaroring a month ago. “Well done, best lap of my life,” he said on the team radio after claiming first place in the Netherlands.

Earlier, Russell had won the sprint race after leading from start to finish leaving him third in the drivers' championship, three points behind Ferrari's Lewis Hamilton and 56 shy of Antonelli. “I'm a little surprised honestly,” said Norris following the end of qualifying. “A decent lap, I was pushing because you've seen how close it is, one hundredth, two hundredths can make a big difference in the end.”

Antonelli admitted it had been “a difficult session” as the 19-year-old Italian – who turns 20 on Tuesday – had to settle for the second row on the grid, alongside Norris's McLaren teammate Oscar Piastri. For Russell, it had been a good day after following up his sprint win with a front-row spot on Sunday.

Seven-time champion Hamilton will start in fifth alongside Ferrari teammate Charles Leclerc, with the Red Bull pair Max Verstappen and Liam Lawson seventh and eighth, respectively. “We changed quite a bit and it didn't make a difference, pretty much the same pace that we've had all weekend,” said a frustrated Verstappen, who signed a new contract with Red Bull this week.