Lando Norris clinched pole position for the Hungarian Grand Prix and led the main talking point this Saturday in Formula 1. The McLaren driver edged Lewis Hamilton by a mere 0.012 seconds, but penalties handed out after qualifying shuffled the front rows on the Hungaroring.
Hamilton had finished second, but dropped three positions for impeding Oscar Piastri during a fast lap. Kimi Antonelli, initially fourth, received the same penalty for not reducing speed sufficiently under yellow flags in Q3. With the decisions, Charles Leclerc moved up to the front row alongside Norris, Piastri rose to third and Max Verstappen to fourth.
Gabriel Bortoleto advanced to Q2 but finished 14th. The Brazilian fought back in Q1 after having a lap erased for exceeding track limits, but was hindered by a yellow flag on his first attempt in Q2 and couldn’t find the pace to keep up with his rivals. Nico Hülkenberg put the other Audi into Q3 and secured 10th place.
The Saturday also brought difficulties for Mercedes and Red Bull. Antonelli will start only seventh, while George Russell sits sixth. Verstappen finished fourth after spin at the final corner in his last attempt, and he confirmed that Tom Hart will succeed Gianpiero Lambiase as his race engineer at Red Bull.
Beyond the Hungaroring, the possibility gained traction that the Bahrain Grand Prix could be staged exceptionally in Sepang, Malaysia, on October 4. The race would retain Bahrain’s name, which would fund the event, while Formula 1 would find an alternative to the difficulties caused by the crisis in the Middle East.
