Lando Norris laments Zandvoort ‘luck’ and makes Oscar Piastri comment immediately after qualifying

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McLaren have once again locked out the front row of the grid this season, with Oscar Piastri taking pole position at Zandvoort.

It was clear since the beginning of the Dutch Grand Prix weekend that a McLaren driver was going to be on pole position.

Lando Norris led every session before qualifying, but Oscar Piastri was hot on his heels.

Norris broke the lap record in FP3, but when it came to the final session of qualifying, it was the Australian who earned the fifth pole position of his Formula 1 career.

They exchanged fastest laps across the session, but at the end of the day, it’s Piastri who walked away with the Zandvoort lap record.

Before the Dutch Grand Prix weekend, Jolyon Palmer told Piastri how many points he should be ahead of Norris if luck were on his side.

Jolyon Palmer then interviewed Piastri and Norris after qualifying, and Norris couldn’t help but subtly bring up his ‘luck’ comment again, while also commenting on how the Australian has been racing since arriving in the Netherlands.

READ MORE: McLaren driver Lando Norris’ life outside F1 from parents to celebration

McLaren star Lando Norris comments on his ‘luck’ at Zandvoort after Dutch Grand Prix qualifying

In his official post-race interview with Palmer at the end of qualifying, Norris was asked if he was disappointed with second on the grid and said: “Yes and no. I mean, it was close, it’s been close the whole weekend, so, it could easily go one way or the other.

“Yeah, I guess I’m a little disappointed not to put it on pole, but it’s close and there were still some decent laps, so, not the end of the world either.”

Norris was asked if a perfect lap would have been enough to get pole position and continued: “No, I mean with the wind like this, a lot of it is down to luck as well.

“Even with all the luck I’ve been having, so, it’s tough. I had a good lap, like Q1, there was a smaller headwind down the straight, and I lost like one hundredth, so you could easily say it’s there.

“I’m in a good position, we’re in a good fight, Oscar’s been driving well all weekend, and we’ve been driving well all season, so we’ll have some fun tomorrow.”

READ MORE: McLaren driver Oscar Piastri’s life outside F1 from height to girlfriend

Lando Norris reminded of 2024 Dutch Grand Prix win after qualifying

Palmer said to Norris that he had a good time starting second at last year’s race, where he got the better of Verstappen, and he said: “I mean, we both had terrible starts last year, so we’ll see.

“I don’t think it’s right to say that the inside’s a lot better, but it’s a long race, a lot of laps, and yeah, we’ll see what the weather holds for us too.”

Last season, Norris was on pole position, but a poor getaway saw Verstappen get the better of him going into turn one.

However, the superior pace of the McLaren compared to Verstappen’s Red Bull meant he eventually got the better of him and went on to win the race.

Piastri is in the same car as Norris this year, and if he gets a strong start, it might be very difficult to beat.

Norris may have to gamble on strategy once again; otherwise, his nine-point advantage might be stretched by the end of Sunday’s Grand Prix.