George Russell secured pole position for the Sprint at the 2026 FIA Formula 1 Dutch Grand Prix, beating Lando Norris by just 0.041 seconds in a closely contested Sprint Qualifying session at Zandvoort.
The Mercedes driver had not topped either of the opening phases, but delivered when it mattered in SQ3, setting a benchmark of 1:11.567 to earn his third Sprint pole of the season.
Norris came close to dislodging Russell with a 1:11.608 for McLaren, while Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc was only 0.055s away from the leading time in third. Oscar Piastri completed a tightly packed top four, the Australian finishing 0.099s behind Russell in the second McLaren.
With less than a tenth separating first from fourth, the fight remained entirely open throughout SQ3.
Kimi Antonelli took fifth for Mercedes, 0.227s off his team-mate’s pace, having sustained floor damage during an excursion at the penultimate corner in SQ1. Home favourite Max Verstappen followed in sixth for Red Bull, ahead of Ferrari’s Lewis Hamilton.
Pierre Gasly claimed eighth for Alpine, narrowly beating Audi’s Gabriel Bortoleto, while Racing Bulls rookie Arvid Lindblad completed the SQ3 order in 10th.
Leclerc had earlier led the way in SQ1 before Piastri moved to the front in SQ2, leaving the outcome finely poised as the leading teams prepared for the decisive runs.
Liam Lawson, deputising at Red Bull for the injured Isack Hadjar, narrowly missed a place in the final segment. The New Zealander ended SQ2 in 11th, only 0.009s ahead of Racing Bulls returnee Yuki Tsunoda in 12th.
Franco Colapinto qualified 13th in the second Alpine, followed by Audi’s Nico Hülkenberg and Haas driver Esteban Ocon. Alexander Albon was the final driver eliminated in SQ2, placing his Williams 16th on the grid.
At the end of SQ1, Haas’ Oliver Bearman made an improvement, but it was only good enough to jump him to P17. His lap left him just 0.010s ahead of Carlos Sainz, who took 18th for Williams after also encountering floor damage during the earlier practice session.
Lance Stroll was 19th for Aston Martin, with the Cadillac pair of Valtteri Bottas and Sergio Pérez occupying 20th and 21st respectively.
Fernando Alonso completed the order in 22nd after a difficult session. The Aston Martin driver locked up at Turn 1, hindered by a problem with the Straight Line Mode on his rear wing, leaving him unable to capitalise on a tow during his final attempt.
2026 FIA Formula 1 Dutch Grand Prix – Sprint Qualifying
1 George Russell Mercedes 1:11.567 - -
2 Lando Norris McLaren/Mercedes 1:11.608 0.041 0.057
3 Charles Leclerc Ferrari 1:11.622 0.055 0.077
4 Oscar Piastri McLaren/Mercedes 1:11.666 0.099 0.138
5 Kimi Antonelli Mercedes 1:11.794 0.227 0.317
6 Max Verstappen Red Bull/Red Bull Ford 1:12.094 0.527 0.736
7 Lewis Hamilton Ferrari 1:12.191 0.624 0.872
8 Pierre Gasly Alpine/Mercedes 1:12.578 1.011 1.413
9 Gabriel Bortoleto Audi 1:12.583 1.016 1.420
10 Arvid Lindblad Racing Bulls/Red Bull Ford 1:12.737 1.170 1.635
11 Liam Lawson Red Bull/Red Bull Ford 1:13.136 1.569 2.192
12 Yuki Tsunoda Racing Bulls/Red Bull Ford 1:13.145 1.578 2.205
13 Franco Colapinto Alpine/Mercedes 1:13.439 1.872 2.616
14 Nico Hülkenberg Audi 1:13.616 2.049 2.863
15 Esteban Ocon Haas/Ferrari 1:13.893 2.326 3.250
16 Alexander Albon Williams/Mercedes 1:14.294 2.727 3.810
17 Oliver Bearman Haas/Ferrari 1:14.728 3.161 4.417
18 Carlos Sainz Williams/Mercedes 1:14.738 3.171 4.431
19 Lance Stroll Aston Martin/Honda 1:15.391 3.824 5.343
20 Valtteri Bottas Cadillac/Ferrari 1:15.472 3.905 5.456
21 Sergio Pérez Cadillac/Ferrari 1:15.545 3.978 5.558
22 Fernando Alonso Aston Martin/Honda 1:16.014 4.447 6.214
