McLaren's Norris shocks, claims 1st career pole ahead of Russian GP
Lando Norris' terrific season with McLaren continued Saturday, with the 21-year-old British driver claiming the first pole position of his career, defeating Ferrari's Carlos Sainz and George Russell of Williams, who placed second and third, respectively.
| Pos. | Driver | Team | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Lando Norris | McLaren | 1:41.993 |
| 2 | Carlos Sainz | Ferrari | +0.517 |
| 3 | George Russell | Williams | +0.990 |
| 4 | Lewis Hamilton | Mercedes | +2.057 |
| 5 | Daniel Ricciardo | McLaren | +2.163 |
| 6 | Fernando Alonso | Alpine | +2.211 |
| 7 | Valtteri Bottas | Mercedes | +2.717 |
| 8 | Lance Stroll | Aston Martin | +2.963 |
| 9 | Sergio Perez | Red Bull | +3.344 |
| 10 | Esteban Ocon | Alpine | +3.872 |
| 11 | Sebastian Vettel | Aston Martin | Q2 |
| 12 | Pierre Gasly | AlphaTauri | Q2 |
| 13 | Yuki Tsunoda | AlphaTauri | Q2 |
| 14 | Nicholas Latifi | Williams | Q2 |
| 15 | Charles Leclerc | Ferrari | Q2 |
| 16 | Kimi Raikkonen | Alfa Romeo | Q1 |
| 17 | Mick Schumacher | Haas | Q1 |
| 18 | Antonio Giovinazzi | Alfa Romeo | Q1 |
| 19 | Nikita Mazepin | Haas | Q1 |
| 20 | Max Verstappen | Red Bull | Q1 |
"It feels amazing. I don't know what to say," Norris said after the race. "You never think you're going to get a pole until you actually do it, but here we are. I have to thank the team so much. It's not really what we expected but we made the most of the opportunity."
Mercedes' Lewis Hamilton and Red Bull's Max Verstappen - the top pair in the drivers' standings - were not among the top three. Hamilton crashed in pit lane during the third section of qualifying while on provisional pole.
Slightly dejected walk past from @LewisHamilton He can expect no favours from those around him on the grid tomorrow #f1 pic.twitter.com/QcwgxRMKHX
— Damon Hill (@HillF1) September 25, 2021
Verstappen, meanwhile, starts Sunday's race at the back of the grid after Red Bull made a power unit change in his car.