The Spanish Grand Prix qualifying session in Barcelona delivered a tense showdown between two McLaren teammates, Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris.
This time, it was Piastri who came out on top, snatching pole position by just over two-tenths of a second.
The Australian’s calm focus gave him the edge over Norris, denying the Brit a chance to secure back-to-back poles.
Lando Norris’s Final Lap Mistakes Cost Him Pole
Lando Norris admitted that a few “little mistakes” during his last flying lap held him back from claiming pole.
In reality, he pushed the car too hard in his final attempt, something that has happened before this season.
That overdrive caused him to lose the momentum he had so masterfully built up just a week earlier at Monaco, where his flawless qualifying led to a long-awaited victory.
Norris hasn’t managed to win consecutive races in his career yet, and Sunday’s race is a golden opportunity for him to change that.
But first, he needs to steer clear of any collisions with his teammate, Piastri, who leads him by three points in the championship.
Their boss, Zak Brown, warned that a crash between them is inevitable at some point this season — just not exactly when or where.
Echoes of Past Rivalries Warn of Tension Ahead
Barcelona has a history of fierce rivalries, like the infamous Mercedes collision between Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg nine years ago.
Back then, Max Verstappen capitalized on the chaos to win his first Grand Prix, and this Sunday, Verstappen — the reigning quadruple world champion — will start third on the grid.
Piastri’s cool-headed approach paid off on Saturday. He started his final flying lap behind Norris, who initially set the fastest time with a bit of help from Piastri’s slipstream — something Piastri cheekily acknowledged.
Norris downplayed it as “coincidental,” saying it was just where they happened to be on the track.
But the real issue came when Norris made a slight error at Turn One on his final lap.
Expert Analysis Highlights Piastri’s Consistency
Former world champion Nico Rosberg, commentating for Sky Sports, pointed out that Norris was “overdriving” from Turn One onwards.
He noted how Norris struggled to keep the car stable, often snapping it sideways and losing the ideal racing line on the exits.
Meanwhile, Piastri’s performance was rock solid — no mistakes, just pure consistency.
Rosberg’s assessment was backed up by the numbers: Piastri’s 0.209-second margin was the largest gap of the season so far, making a clear statement about their contrasting performances.
McLaren Holds Strong Despite Technical Changes
McLaren also showed resilience despite new technical rules introduced in Barcelona, which clamp down on front wing flexing.
Many teams were expected to be affected, but McLaren’s performance showed they are still very much the team to beat at this point in the season.
Mercedes driver George Russell matched Verstappen’s time but will start fourth because he crossed the finish line slightly later.
Lewis Hamilton secured fifth, a noteworthy improvement given that he has only outqualified his Ferrari teammate Charles Leclerc twice this year — now seven times out of nine.
Hamilton Voices Frustration Over Technical Regulations
Hamilton didn’t hold back in his criticism of the new front-wing regulations, calling them “a waste of money.”
He said the changes “changed nothing” and joked he would have preferred the money to be donated to charity instead.