Lando Norris Storms to Miami Sprint Pole to Break Mercedes Dominance

Lando Norris has ended Mercedes’ streak of single-lap dominance this season by storming to Sprint pole at the Miami Grand Prix. The British driver delivered a blistering lap in the final moments of SQ3 to beat championship leader Kimi Antonelli and McLaren teammate Oscar Piastri.

Following a lengthy break after Suzuka, the paddock arrived in Florida with vastly different machinery. Red Bull, Ferrari and McLaren all brought significant upgrade packages to their cars. Mercedes arrived with minimal changes, setting the stage for a dramatic shift in the pecking order on a scorching street circuit where track temperatures reached over 50 Degrees Celsius.

SQ1: Aston Martin and Cadillac falter early

The opening 12-minute segment on medium tyres was chaotic as a dusty track caught out several drivers. Lance Stroll suffered a major lock-up and ran off down at Turn 17, triggering yellow flags that ruined the laps of several cars behind him.

The Canadian was unable to recover and dropped out alongside his Aston Martin teammate Fernando Alonso. Home hopefuls Cadillac also struggled to make an impact, with both Sergio Perez and Valtteri Bottas eliminated. They were joined by Racing Bulls’ Liam Lawson and Haas driver Esteban Ocon.

SQ2: Alpine impresses as Audi narrowly misses out

As the track gripped up during the 10-minute SQ2 session, the leading teams traded blows on the medium compound. George Russell initially set the pace before Charles Leclerc went nearly half a second quicker.

The midfield battle saw a reshuffle with Haas and Racing Bulls dropping back while Alpine surged forward. Both Pierre Gasly and Franco Colapinto safely navigated their way into the top 10. Audi’s Gabriel Bortoleto and Nico Hulkenberg just missed the cut, falling out along with Oliver Bearman, Alex Albon, Carlos Sainz and Arvid Lindblad.

SQ3: A one-lap shootout on softs

The final eight-minute session evolved into a tense one-lap shootout on the mandatory soft C5 tyres. Russell and Lewis Hamilton were the first to set times but Norris soon obliterated their benchmarks with a phenomenal 1m 27.869s lap.

Leclerc crossed the line nearly four tenths adrift of Norris while Max Verstappen could only manage fifth. Piastri slotted into second momentarily before Antonelli, who was the last driver to leave the pit lane, split the McLarens to grab second place by just 0.017s.

Despite Antonelli’s late heroics, Norris held on to claim a vital Sprint pole by a comfortable 0.222s margin.

Miami Sprint Qualifying Leaderboard

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