Lando Norris seized pole position for the 2026 Hungarian Grand Prix on Saturday at the Hungaroring, edging Ferrari’s Lewis Hamilton by just 0.012 seconds in a dramatic qualifying session.
Last-Gasp Drama and Qualifying Results at the Hungaroring
Lando Norris waited until the final moments of Q3 to launch his decisive effort, stopping the clocks at 1:17.207 to deny Lewis Hamilton a record-extending 10th pole position at the Budapest circuit. The McLaren driver set the fastest time of the weekend. Lando Norris took his first pole position of the 2026 season.
Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc qualified third, while championship leader Kimi Antonelli put his Mercedes fourth, 0.260 seconds behind Norris. Oscar Piastri completed the top five for McLaren, ahead of four-time world champion Max Verstappen in the Red Bull.
“I am very happy to be back on top,” said Norris. “It was a tough session and these guys (Ferrari) were very quick.”
Lando Norris
Norris felt he could easily have gone much faster if he had time for another run to iron out mistakes. I had the confidence to push more,
he said. I got it to unexplored territory from what happens to the balance when I push it that next level, and I lost a bit of time in a couple of places.
Grid Penalties and Driver Frustrations Shake Up the Field
Lewis Hamilton was on course for a record-extending 10th pole position at the Budapest circuit before Norris darted through to take it away.
“It’s been a while,” Norris said. “I felt confident all weekend.”
Lando Norris
Hungary is hosting the 11th race weekend of the 2026 season, and the last round before the summer break. Last year was a dry race won by Lando Norris, who just held off his team mate in a thrilling battle, the two of them separated by less than a second across the line. Based on the current forecast, it certainly looks like another dry race might be in store. Europe has been gripped by a heat wave for much of the summer, and Hungary has been fairly warm and dry of late. It certainly looks like the trend might continue – although the event has delivered plenty of rain in the past.
Mercedes is flying at the top of the standings, but there are clearly some issues between George Russell and his team. Meanwhile, Kimi Antonelli raced away from the competition to win again at the Belgian GP, extending his lead over Lewis Hamilton, but Ferrari continues to cut the gap. Friday dominated Friday’s running with Charles Leclerc topping the timesheets in FP1, ahead of Max Verstappen and his teammate Lewis Hamilton. The second practice session saw Hamilton, who is aiming for a record ninth win at the Hungaroring, top a Ferrari 1-2 ahead of the McLaren of Lando Norris. Mercedes showed encouraging long run pace but struggled for outright pace over one lap, with George Russell finishing fifth in both sessions. Kimi Antonelli set out the first session for test driver Frederik Vesti, and only managed P13 in FP2, after he was unable to put a lap together due to a red flag, and then making a mistake on his next flying run.
Weather Forecast and Broadcast Options for Sunday’s Race
Fans can sign up for a 7-day free trial of Apple TV+ through Prime Video Channels to watch select F1 races for free, and watch the Hungarian GP for free with the Prime Video app. The AWS Hungarian Grand Prix takes place on July 26 with a race start time of 9:00 AM EDT, spanning July 24-26, 2026. The full driver lineup features L. Norris and O. Piastri for McLaren; L. Hamilton and C. Leclerc for Ferrari; K. Antonelli and G. Russell for Mercedes; M. Verstappen and I. Hadjar for Red Bull; A. Lindblad and L. Lawson for Racing Bulls; N. Hülkenberg and G. Bortoleto for Audi; P. Gasly and F. Colapinto for Alpine; E. Ocon and O. Bearman for Haas; F. Alonso and L. Stroll for Aston Martin; C. Sainz and A. Albon for Williams; and V. Bottas and S. Pérez for Cadillac.
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