MADRID (AP) — Lando Norris outdueled Kimi Antonelli to take a big step toward winning the first Formula 1 race in Madrid in more than four decades by securing the important pole position for the Spanish Grand Prix on Saturday.
Antonelli had been the most dominant driver the whole weekend in the Spanish capital, but Norris came through with the fastest time in his final qualifying attempt at the new Madring urban circuit that won't yield many overtaking
opportunities.
Norris set a time of 1 minute 31.824 seconds, one hundredth of a second ahead of Antonelli, who was coming off an epic come-from-behind win in front of his home fans in Monza.
The 20-year-old Antonelli leads Mercedes' teammate George Russell by 66 points in the drivers’ standings.
Max Verstappen will start third with Red Bull, followed by the Ferraris of Lewis Hamilton — who crashed in the final practice session earlier Saturday — and Charles Leclerc. Russell was next.
It was a mostly clean session after two red flags affected the final practice session earlier Saturday at the unforgiving circuit that mixes existing roads with purpose-built sections.
The 5.4-kilometer (3.3-mile) Madring track has been giving drivers little margin for error.
Antonelli locked up tires and went straight but avoided crashing earlier in the qualifying session. Russell brushed the wall at one point.
Haas’ Oliver Bearman did not participate in qualifying because of a crash in the final practice session earlier Saturday.
Aston Martin’s Lance Stroll also did not join qualifying after taking a grid penalty for switching power-unit components.
As expected, the two Spaniards couldn't give the home fans a lot of reason to celebrate.
Two-time world champion Fernando Alonso will start 18th with Aston Martin, while Williams' Carlos Sainz will be 17th. Neither advanced past the first qualifying stage.
Organizers expected a total attendance of nearly 350,000 people at the track in the Spanish capital.
The Spanish GP is returning to the Madrid region for the first time in 45 years. It took place at the Jarama circuit in the capital’s outskirts in 1981. The Jerez de la Frontera track in southern Spain hosted races from 1986-90, and in 1994 and 1997. Barcelona has been hosting races in Spain the past few years. Madring signed a contract with F1 through 2035.
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