0.5 seconds behind on Friday, pole on Saturday: McLaren ace Lando Norris explains why he can’t understand the excitement surrounding his sprint qualifying
Lando Norris surprisingly secured pole position in qualifying for the Belgian Grand Prix, not only beating teammate Oscar Piastri but also dispelling any doubts from the sprint qualifying session the day before.
On Friday, Norris was more than half a second behind Piastri in the shootout, which was a shocking deficit even on a sprint weekend where there is only one free practice session before the sprint qualifying. But Norris himself sees it as an overblown issue.
“There was nothing to worry about,” he said after securing pole position. “People like to make things up. But I felt good and the car was strong all weekend.” Instead of a fundamental weakness, it was simply a snapshot in time – and on Saturday, the roles were suddenly reversed.
Small adjustments, big effect
In fact, Norris impressively turned the tables in Q3: with a lap that wasn’t perfect, but was ultimately 0.173 seconds faster than Piastri’s – and good enough for pole position.
Ironically, the second attempt felt even better than the first. “I think the second run was cleaner. It just wasn’t any faster. It was little things – a bit too much curb in turn 1, a bit in the last chicane. That’s enough to lose a few hundredths.”
McLaren team principal Andrea Stella confirmed: “Lando had a few minor issues with acceleration on Friday, which he was able to correct on Saturday by adjusting his driving style. It wasn’t a setup issue – more a question of driving and execution.”
Career pole No. 13, and his first at Spa-Francorchamps
Nice work, @LandoNorris F1 BelgianGP pic.twitter.com/50d835wy7p
— Formula 1 (@F1) July 26, 2025
Piastri’s Friday lap, on the other hand, was “almost perfect,” according to Stella. “That’s why it was such a close battle today – but Lando was more precise in the decisive moments.”
The most likely reason for the lack of improvement is that the sun came out in the second run in Q3 and the track temperature rose by several degrees. This meant that the times were slower than in the first attempt, which ultimately proved fatal for both Oscar Pistri and Max Verstappen.
Consistency instead of setup experiments
While Red Bull significantly enlarged the rear wing in anticipation of rain on Sunday, McLaren took the conservative route. “We didn’t change anything,” said both Norris and Piastri. Stella added that they had only fitted a slightly larger Gurney flap to the rear wing – a small detail for minimal additional downforce, but by no means a fundamental redesign like on Verstappen’s Red Bull.
“It used to be different,” explained the Italian. “You used to adjust the ground clearance or install softer dampers. Today, most of it works through the aero. You only need marginal interventions.”
Both McLaren drivers are pushing each other to peak performance. But both drivers still treat each other with respect – too much respect, according to some observers, given what is at stake. “Oscar is doing a great job,” Norris praises. “We can see exactly where the other is stronger, and that helps us both. It’s a tough but good battle we’re having right now.”
Stella praises the team’s overall performance: “Oscar was more consistent over the weekend, but Lando delivered when it mattered. That’s exactly what we need.“
It remains to be seen whether Norris can capitalize on this advantage in possible rainy conditions on Sunday. The forecasts point to an unpredictable race – but Norris is confident: ”I think we have the best car – and that’s what matters. No matter what the weather does.”
