Piastri beats Norris to pole position in Spain

McLaren's Oscar Piastri put successful a stunning thigh to gain rod position from team-mate Lando Norris astatine nan Spanish Grand Prix.

The Australian hit Norris by 0.209 seconds, vaulting himself up of nan Briton - who had been faster connected nan first runs successful last qualifying but made an correction connected his past lap.

Red Bull's Max Verstappen was 3rd fastest, 0.302secs slower than Piastri.

Mercedes driver George Russell group precisely nan aforesaid thigh clip arsenic nan Dutchman but will commencement 4th because he group it a fewer seconds later.

Ferrari's Lewis Hamilton hit team-mate Charles Leclerc for only nan 2nd clip successful a expansive prix qualifying convention this twelvemonth to return fifth, up of Mercedes' Kimi Antonelli.

Leclerc, Alpine's Pierre Gasly, Racing Bulls' Iscak Hadjar and Aston Martin's Fernando Alonso completed nan apical 10.

Piastri's advantage suggests that a norm alteration aimed astatine restricting nan flexing of beforehand wings for aerodynamic summation has had nary effect connected McLaren.

It was introduced by governing assemblage nan FIA aft intensive lobbying by Red Bull, who - on pinch Ferrari - hoped it would peg backmost immoderate of McLaren's performance.

Verstappen and Red Bull person tended to beryllium a adjacent lucifer for McLaren astatine circuits pinch predominantly agelong mean and high-speed corners, arsenic this 1 does.

But nan spread betwixt rod and Verstappen was bigger than astatine Imola, wherever nan Dutchman won, and successful Japan and Saudi Arabia, wherever he was connected pole.

It was besides nan biggest separator nan pole-sitter has had each season.

Piastri said nan norm alteration had constricted effect connected McLaren and nan measurement they prepared their car for nan race.

He added: "It's been a beardown play truthful far. Didn't commencement disconnected that good but coming nan car's been mega."

Norris had been 0.017secs faster than Piastri connected nan first runs successful nan apical 10 shootout, partially acknowledgment to a mini slipstream he earned from his team-mate astatine nan commencement of his thigh - to which Piastri reacted complete nan power by saying: "Cheeky."

"I don't deliberation location was thing untoward," he added. "I deliberation it was conscionable a coincidence."

Norris joked: "We planned it each weekend," earlier adding: "No, it was conscionable a coincidence."

But Norris made errors successful a mates of corners connected his last tally and, though he improved his time, fell short of Piastri.

Norris said: "Just a mates of small mistakes. Turn One, wherever you don't want to make a correction because it harms nan tyres for nan remainder of nan lap. A mates of small squiggles there. And Turn Four arsenic well. The gait was easy location but a mates of small mistakes."

Verstappen had been a agelong measurement disconnected connected his first tally successful nan last session, aft trying a different attack to preparing his tyres connected nan retired thigh which did not work, but leapt up connected his last run.

"Turn One was ne'er bully moreover though I tried different approaches," he said. "The remainder was fine, nan car was successful a decent window, unluckily not accelerated enough."

Russell, who qualified 4th successful Spain past year, but led nan first thigh aft overtaking Norris and Verstappen astir nan extracurricular of nan first corner, said: "Very adjacent pinch Max and Lando, decidedly not successful nan conflict for rod but different than Monaco we person been successful nan apical 5 each qualifying. We cognize that's wherever nan car is connected a Saturday.

"Our extremity is to effort and amended nan title pace. We person made immoderate beautiful drastic changes to nan set-up this weekend, affirmative that it hasn't hindered qualifying gait but whether it will amended nan title gait is different story."

Hamilton, 0.499secs from pole, said he was "relatively happy pinch it" because it had been "definitely an betterment from wherever we've been".

Leclerc, 2 places further back, was restricted connected tyres successful qualifying because Ferrari utilized a group of softs successful last believe to guarantee he had an extras group of mediums for nan race.

He did a half-lap connected a 2nd group of softs successful Q2 successful lawsuit he needed to amended to guarantee he progressed. He negociate to abort it, but that near him only 1 tally successful nan last session, which he did early. Leclerc said that made qualifying "tricky" and added: "I dream our tyre prime will salary disconnected tomorrow."

Alonso, who besides had only 1 caller group of soft tyres for Q3, leapt up to 5th spot erstwhile he did his thigh successful nan mediate of nan session, and whooped complete nan power - having felt it was a bully one.

But he tumbled down to nan bottommost of nan apical 10 arsenic others did their laps later.

"It was bully nan full play to beryllium honest," he said. "Always successful nan apical 10 successful each sessions, Q3 successful 0.1secs you tin decorativeness P7 aliases P10. We are nan past of that group but let's spot what we tin do."

His capacity suggested that nan upgrades put connected nan car for Imola 2 races ago, and which carried immoderate power from caller managing method partner Adrian Newey, are having an effect but nan squad admit nan car remains very difficult to drive, moreover if it has much performance.

Alonso's team-mate Lance Stroll was 0.535secs slower successful Q2 and past missed nan measurement span astatine nan extremity of nan session, truthful has been reported to nan stewards.