Norris grabs sensational pole at U.S. Grand Prix, edges out Verstappen

AUSTIN,Texas: McLaren’s Lando Norris claimed his sixth career pole position at the U.S. Grand Prix, delivering what he called the “best qualifying lap” of his Formula One career. Norris beat Red Bull rival and championship leader Max Verstappen by a razor-thin margin of 0.031 seconds to secure pole at Austin’s Circuit of the Americas on Saturday.

Norris set a storming provisional pole time of 1 minute 32.330 seconds with his first flying lap in Q3. Verstappen, who had earlier won the sprint race and leads Norris by 54 points in the standings, seemed poised to beat the Briton’s time on his second run. However, an accident by George Russell in the final moments of qualifying forced Verstappen and others to abandon their final laps due to double yellow warning flags.

Russell’s Mercedes crashed in the final sector, but the British driver escaped unhurt, though the incident brought an abrupt end to the session.

For Norris, this marked his fourth pole position in the last five races, and his first on U.S. soil. “It was a tough one, but probably the best lap of my career so far,” Norris said, brimming with confidence ahead of Sunday’s race.

Despite losing out on pole, Verstappen remained optimistic, reflecting on his missed opportunity. “I think we had a really good shot [at pole] but unfortunately, I couldn’t finish the lap,” the Dutch driver said.

Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz and Charles Leclerc rounded out the second row for Sunday’s race, with Sainz finishing second in the earlier sprint race and Norris coming in third.