Lando Norris and the McLaren team They begin dominating the 2025 season, after the young British pilot achieved the ‘pole’ of the Formula 1 Australian Grand Prixthat opens the season, ahead of his partner Oscar Piastri team.
“It’s the perfect way to start the year!” Norris congratulated. “But they are only the qualifications, we will see tomorrow” in the race, said the current vice -champion.
And rightly. These first classifications of the season were played under more than 30 ºC in the Albert Park of Melbourne urban circuit, but rain is forecast on Sunday. A situation that could brow the cards for the debut of the championship.
“The car is very fast,” Norris got excited, although he admitted that Sunday may be different if the rain appears. “We have never tried it wet.”
Apparently this Saturday, McLaren, which last year achieved the World Cup, appears as the rival to beat, although the few differences between the teams make forecasts difficult.
“Fantastic start of the season with the first line,” Piastri said, who expects Sunday to become the first Australian to win the Australian GP from Alan Jones in 1980.
Lando Norris better than Verstappen
The current world champion Max Verstappen (Red Bull) was third in the classification and George Russell, of Mercedes, will accompany the world -world Tetracampeón of Red Bull in the second row.
The Dutch was “surprised” with his third place “after how hard he was” Friday on a feet that “has never been too good” for Red Bull, but said he had “confidence” for the race.
Chasco for Ferrari
In his first GP with Ferrari, the septuple world champion Lewis Hamilton will leave from the eighth position, behind his Monegasque partner Charles Leclerc.
“It is not the result we wanted, but in general I am satisfied with the progress we have made in the last two days,” Hamilton consolidated, remembering that it is his first GP with Ferrari and that he is in “learning process.”
Although the two cars of the legendary Italian team seemed to be in the lead at the beginning of the qualification, they losing ground in front of the competition.
Between the headboard and the two red cars were the two big surprises of the day, the Japanese Yuki Tsunoda, 5th best chrono with his Racing Bull, and the Thai Alexander Albon, 6th, who with this result confirmed the good condition of his Williams team seen during the preseason training.
His Spanish partner Carlos Sainz, signed for this season from Ferrari, will leave 10th in his first race with the British team.
The other Spanish of the grill, Fernando Alonso, will leave from the 12th position with his Aston Martin, sharing a line with the Frenchman Isack Hadjar, the best of the debutants with his Racing Bulls.
Sáinz 10º, Alonso 12º
In a season in which there have been many pilot changes in the different teams, the rookies had a sample of the difficulties that will be found during the year.
Although Hadjar, the Australian Jack Doohan (Alpine) and the Brazilian Gabriel Bortoleto (Sauber) achieved the Q2 and you will start with positions 11, 14 and 15, respectively, Hamilton’s substitute in Mercedes, the young Italian Andrea Kimi Antonelli (18 years), could only be 16º, almost a second of his teammate Russell.
Nor did the New Zealand Liam Lawson, companion of Verstappen in Red Bull after the dismissal of Mexican Sergio ‘Czech’ Pérez, who finished 18th, more than second and a half of the world champion.
The British Oliver Bearman, 19, continues to live a nightmare with Haas in this first weekend of the season and after suffering tracks on Friday in the training on Friday and Saturday morning, he could not mark any chrono due to a problem in the gearbox and leave since the last position of the grill.
