Lando Norris struck an important blow in the Formula 1 championship battle by taking pole position for the 2025 Mexican Grand Prix, as Max Verstappen could only qualify fifth and points leader Oscar Piastri languished down in eighth.
The big questions coming into qualifying were: Could anyone challenge Norris, who was miles faster than anyone else in final practice? And could his McLaren team-mate and F1 championship leader Piastri find some speed from somewhere after an underwhelming weekend so far?
The answer to both of those questions was emphatically no.
Norris looked hooked up throughout the session, while Piastri appeared to lack confidence in the high-speed eases and struggled to get his McLaren to turn properly through the slower sections.
Norris lapped two tenths of a second clear of the field in Q2 and took pole by a commanding 0.262s in Q3.
But slotting in-between Norris and his title rivals were the two Ferraris and George Russell’s Mercedes.
Lewis Hamilton was second quickest in Q1 and Q2 and ended up third on the grid, within a tenth of team-mate Charles Leclerc - who was on provisional pole after the first runs in Q3 before Norris hooked his final lap together.
Russell pipped Verstappen by just 0.036s to limit the Red Bull driver to a row-three start.
Kimi Antonelli made it two Mercedes inside the top six, while Carlos Sainz’s Williams was seventh, 0.002s quicker than Piastri, who will gain at least one spot on the grid thanks to Sainz needing to serve a grid penalty for colliding with Antonelli during the US GP.
Isack Hadjar, who was quickest in Q1 for Racing Bulls, and Ollie Bearman’s Haas rounded out the top 10.
Bearman and Antonelli both looked in danger of dropping out in Q2 but found laptime when it mattered to escape the drop - leaving Yuki Tsunoda, Esteban Ocon, Nico Hulkenberg, Fernando Alonso and Liam Lawson filling places 11-15.
Gabriel Bortoleto, Alex Albon, Pierre Gasly, Lance Stroll and Franco Colapinto were the five drivers to fall in Q1.
Albon complained his brakes weren’t working; Bortoleto and Stroll complained of a lack of grip; the Alpine drivers have been generally miserable about their car’s lack of performance all weekend, so a double Q1 elimination did not come as a shock.
Results
1 Lando Norris (McLaren) 1m15.586s
2 Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) +0.262s
3 Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari) +0.352s
4 George Russell (Mercedes) +0.448s
5 Max Verstappen (Red Bull) +0.484s
6 Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes) +0.532s
7 Carlos Sainz (Williams) +0.586s (will take 5-place grid penalty)
8 Oscar Piastri (McLaren) +0.588s
9 Isack Hadjar (Racing Bulls) +0.666s
10 Ollie Bearman (Haas) +0.874s
11 Yuki Tsunoda (Red Bull) 1m16.816s
12 Esteban Ocon (Haas) 1m16.837s
13 Nico Hulkenberg (Sauber) 1m17.016s
14 Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin) 1m17.103s
15 Liam Lawson (Racing Bulls) 1m18.072s
16 Gabriel Bortoleto (Sauber) 1m17.412s
17 Alex Albon (Williams) 1m17.490s
18 Pierre Gasly (Alpine) 1m17.546s
19 Lance Stroll (Aston Martin) 1m17.606s
20 Franco Colapinto (Alpine) 1m17.670s
