Oscar Piastri edged out teammate Lando Norris to secure pole position at the 2025 Spanish Grand Prix, giving McLaren a commanding front-row lockout in Barcelona.
In an intense qualifying session at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya, Piastri delivered a sensational final lap with a time of 1:11.546, narrowly surpassing Norris, who had led after the first flying laps in Q3. The Aussie’s fourth pole of the season comes as he leads the Drivers’ Championship by just three points over Norris, adding more drama to the title battle between the McLaren duo.
Lando Norris, fresh from his pole-to-win performance in Monaco, couldn’t repeat the magic as a slightly messy final attempt left him two-tenths off Piastri’s pace. Behind the McLaren pair, Max Verstappen clinched third for Red Bull, posting an identical time to George Russell but earning the higher grid spot by setting his lap earlier.
Mercedes’ George Russell lines up fourth, while Lewis Hamilton secured fifth for Ferrari, outperforming teammate Charles Leclerc—who starts seventh—for only the second time in nine qualifying sessions this season. Teen sensation Kimi Antonelli impressively slotted into sixth in his Mercedes.
Red Bull’s second-car issues persisted, with Yuki Tsunoda failing to progress past Q1 for a third consecutive race and starting last. Verstappen, however, remained optimistic, noting:
“We’ve been lacking pace compared to McLaren all weekend, but we executed qualifying well. It’ll be tough to beat them on Sunday, but I’ll give it everything.”
Meanwhile, Pierre Gasly put Alpine back in the spotlight with a strong P8 finish, just ahead of Racing Bulls rookie Isack Hadjar, who continues to turn heads. Fernando Alonso rounded out the top ten for Aston Martin.
Despite pre-race chatter about a new flexi-wing regulation potentially impacting McLaren, the Woking-based team proved dominant under the updated technical directive, raising questions about whether this year’s championship fight will now be an all-McLaren affair.
As race day approaches, Sunday’s Grand Prix promises to be a thrilling showdown. Catch all the action live at 2pm on Sky Sports F1, with coverage beginning at 12:30pm.
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