Max Verstappen snatches 2025 Italian Grand Prix pole from Lando Norris

Follow us on Google Discover

Despite struggling with the Red Bull during the practice sessions, Verstappen was able to secure pole ahead of both McLaren drivers.

With his flying Q3 lap, Verstappen has also taken the fastest lap in Formula 1 history, beating the record which was previously set by Lewis Hamilton at Monza in 2020.

McLaren faced a difficult practice session, as Norris flirted with a Q2 exit earlier in the afternoon. Following the session, Norris told Nico Rosberg: “P2 is not a bad position to be off the line. A good position for tomorrow and excited for the race. Our race on Sunday is normally our strength but to get past Max will be a big challenge.”

All eyes will now focus on the front-runners heading into Turn 1 and whether the Red Bull can remain ahead of the McLarens during the race.

Isack Hadjar goes from the podium to a Q1 knockout

Carlos Sainz was the first to have his lap time deleted after going off track at the exit of the second Lesmo. Coming off the circuit, the Williams scattered gravel onto the track, which could impact grip on that corner.

Verstappen also went off at the corner, resulting in a concerned radio message to check the floor. Drivers have struggled with the second Lesmo exit this weekend, including Antonelli, who found himself beached in the gravel during FP2.

Disappointment for the Racing Bulls came in Q1, with both Isack Hadjar and Liam Lawson knocked out during the first qualifying run. Lawson saw his lap time deleted for track limits, dropping him to the bottom of the table.

Alpine also struggled with the session, losing both drivers during the first round. The Enstone-based team announced this morning that they had re-signed Pierre Gasly with a new contract until 2028, but the Frenchman was out-qualified by his teammate Franco Colapinto in P.19 and P.18, respectively.

Lance Stroll also failed to get his Aston Martin into Q2, finishing the session in seventeenth. The times, however, are incredibly close, with Jolyon Palmer noting on F1 TV: “When the field’s as close as it is, it doesn’t take much going wrong to be knocked out in Q1.”

Both Williams fail to reach Q3 after strong practice performances

Lando Norris appeared to struggle slightly in Q2, being called back into the pit lane with seven minutes of the session remaining. When the Brit returned to the track, he was warned by his McLaren race engineer Will Joseph that he needed to push for a strong time, although he was only able to initially finish P7.

All looked tense as the Q2 session came to a close, with Norris sitting in the drop zone during his final flying lap. Both Norris and Hamilton flirted with a Q2 exit, but were able to pull themselves back into the final part of qualifying.

After a strong Friday for Williams, the team were struck by disappointment when Carlos Sainz and Alex Albon failed to reach Q3. The team looked like they could have been towards the top of the pack this weekend, although James Vowles told Sky Sports after FP3: “I think we’ve fallen back a little bit. I think we’ve got about a tenth more to find.”

Both Haas drivers were also knocked out of the Q2 session alongside Nico Hulkenberg, who has been outqualified by his rookie teammate Gabriel Bortoleto at nine races this year.

Max Verstappen snatches pole from Lando Norris after tight Q3

The Q3 session was everyone’s game, with the timings between cars incredibly close. Charles Leclerc initially brought delight to the Tifosi on the first runs, taking provisional pole, before his time was beaten by Verstappen.

Yuki Tsunoda was able to make it into Q3 for only the second time in ten races and was able to use his Red Bull to aid Max Verstappen by giving him a tow. Tsunoda will want to be playing the team game in the last part of the year, with his contract expiring at the end of 2025.

The McLaren drivers appeared to be slightly on the back foot during the session, with Piastri in third and Norris in seventh with 3 minutes remaining of the session. Despite the Brit topping both FP2 and FP3 timings, he appeared to struggle to put a strong lap together amongst a very tightly packed grid.

Verstappen was able to snatch P1 from Norris by just seven tenths of a second, to take his first pole since he also caused upset for McLaren at the 2025 British Grand Prix.

Charles Leclerc will start the race behind Piastri, with the Ferrari drivers finishing qualifying in fourth and fifth.

Lewis Hamilton will see himself start from P10 after being handed a five-place grid penalty for the Italian Grand Prix, after failing to slow for double-waved yellow flags at last weekend’s Dutch Grand Prix.

Qualifying results for 2025 Italian Grand Prix