Updated

Updated · Racingnews365.com · Jul 25

Norris Keeps Pole as Hamilton, Antonelli Take 3-Place Hungarian GP Grid Penalties

Updated

Updated · Racingnews365.com · Jul 25

Norris Keeps Pole as Hamilton, Antonelli Take 3-Place Hungarian GP Grid Penalties

Q: Did Norris win pole outright, or did Ferrari throw away the Hungarian GP’s fastest lap with one mistimed Q3 decision?

Norris won pole on merit, but Ferrari also let a realistic chance slip. The evidence points both ways, with Norris still deserving top billing. He set the fastest lap of the session, a 1:17.207, and was one of the very few front-runners to improve on the final Q3 run in worsening, shifting conditions. Hamilton’s best was 1:17.219, just 0.012s slower, while Leclerc was third after admitting he never adapted properly to the wind change. Norris also had imperfect laps and still delivered when it mattered most. At the same time, Ferrari’s own drivers made clear they believed more was available. Hamilton said the team sending him out early in Q3 was “not the right call,” arguing it cost him track evolution and left him without the grip needed on the final run. Reports from the session support that reading: Hamilton took provisional pole on his first Q3 lap, but neither Ferrari improved at the end while Norris, running later, did. That makes Ferrari’s Q3 timing decision a significant factor, not a complete explanation. The Hungaroring session was shaped by wind shifts, low grip, tyre warm-up difficulty and interrupted laps, so there was no guarantee Hamilton or Leclerc would have converted a later run into pole. Ferrari may have thrown away its best shot, but Norris still had to execute under pressure and did so. So the fairest answer is that Norris earned pole outright, while Ferrari’s mistimed Q3 call likely turned what could have been a Ferrari pole into a McLaren one.

3 articles · Updated · Racingnews365.com · Jul 25

Lando Norris will start from pole in Budapest, while post-qualifying penalties reshuffled the top seven and lifted Charles Leclerc to second and Oscar Piastri to third.
Hamilton was dropped three places for impeding Piastri in Q3, and Antonelli was separately demoted three spots to seventh for failing to slow sufficiently under yellow flags.
That moved Max Verstappen up to fourth and left Hamilton fifth, with George Russell sixth after a water leak disrupted his Q3 run.
Norris had originally beaten Hamilton by just 0.012 seconds for his first pole since Las Vegas 2025; the grid remains provisional pending FIA confirmation.