Lando Norris Stops Verstappen's Dominance At The Pole Position Zandvoort

McLaren's racer, Lando Norris managed to end Max Verstappen's dominance in the pole position of Zandvoort (photo: x @f1)

JAKARTA - McLaren's racer, Lando Norris managed to end Max Verstappen's dominance at the pole position of Zandvoort in the qualifying session of the Dutch Grand Prix on Saturday, August 24, 2024. Norris became the first racer to beat Verstappen on his home circuit, with the best time of 1 minute 09,673 seconds.

Although Verstappen, who leads the championship standings, has been in pole at Zandvoort every year since 2021, he has to settle for second place, 0.356 seconds adrift of Norris. In third place, Norris' teammate Oscar Piastri, confirmed McLaren's dominance in the front row, followed by George Russell from Mercedes in fourth place.

"I feel comfortable out there. The car feels amazing. We have had some improvements and everything is working very well," Norris said confidently after the qualifying session.

Verstappen, despite failing to win pole, remains optimistic about the race. "I'm trying my best. I'm still happy to be in the front row. Tomorrow will be difficult, but we will give our best," said Verstappen, who still leads the standings with a difference of 78 points from Norris after 14 out of 24 races.

This qualifying session also recorded fifth place for Sergio Perez of Red Bull, followed by Charles Leclerc of Ferrari and Fernando Alonso of Aston Martin in seventh place. Lewis Hamilton of Mercedes had to settle for starting the race from 12th place, after having problems in qualifying sessions and allegedly obstructing Perez, which got him called by stewards.

With Norris winning the fourth pole in his career, and Verstappen still in second place, it is certain that the race in Zandvoort will be fierce.