Brazilian GP 2025
NOVEMBER 8, 2025
Qualifying Report - Norris storms to dominant Brazil GP pole
© McLaren
Lando Norris produced a commanding performance to seize pole position for the Brazilian Grand Prix, while Max Verstappen suffered a stunning early elimination in 16th after a troubled qualifying session at Interlagos.
After locking up at Turn 1 on his first Q3 run, Norris regrouped to deliver a superb 1m09.511s lap in his McLaren–Mercedes, nearly two tenths clear of Mercedes rookie Andrea Kimi Antonelli. Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc completed the top three with a 1m09.805s, while Oscar Piastri was fourth on 1m09.886s after leading the early Q3 runs.
Antonelli impressed once again, lapping in 1m09.685s to secure his first front-row start in Formula 1, just 0.174s off Norris. Leclerc and Piastri were closely matched, separated by only seven hundredths, as the top four were covered by less than four tenths of a second.
Behind them, Isack Hadjar continued his weekend for Racing Bulls with a brilliant fifth place in 1m09.931s, narrowly ahead of George Russell’s Mercedes on 1m09.942s. Liam Lawson ensured both Racing Bulls featured in the top seven with 1m09.962s, while Haas rookie Oliver Bearman—who briefly looked in contention for pole—took eighth with 1m09.977s. Pierre Gasly’s Alpine (1m10.002s) and Nico Hülkenberg’s Sauber (1m10.039s) completed the Q3 order, all within half a second of Norris.
In Q2, Norris again set the pace with 1m09.616s ahead of Bearman, while Leclerc narrowly escaped elimination after an early tank-slapper left him in danger. Lewis Hamilton’s Ferrari missed the Q3 cut by just a tenth in 13th, sandwiched between Fernando Alonso (11th, 1m10.122s) and Lance Stroll (14th). Williams’ Alex Albon was 12th, with Carlos Sainz 15th after a scruffy final sector.
The biggest shock came in Q1, where Verstappen’s struggles intensified. Red Bull made extensive post-sprint setup changes, but the RB21 remained unsettled, particularly through the middle sector. The reigning world champion’s final attempt improved his time to 1m10.454s, but with the entire field separated by under nine tenths, that was only good enough for 16th—his worst qualifying result since 2018.
Esteban Ocon (17th), Franco Colapinto (18th) and Yuki Tsunoda (19th) joined Verstappen in the Q1 drop zone, marking Red Bull’s first double Q1 exit since the 2006 Japanese Grand Prix. Local rookie Gabriel Bortoleto failed to participate after his car couldn’t be repaired in time following a heavy sprint crash.
Norris’s pole marks his fifth of the 2025 season and puts him in prime position to extend his slender championship lead in Sunday’s grand prix.