Q1

Qualifying for the Austrian Grand Prix began with a short delay due to a dramatic crash in the earlier Formula 2 session. Sami Meguetounif’s car flipped over both Arvid Lindblad and Luke Browning before landing upside down. Thankfully, all three drivers were unharmed, but the incident caused a red flag and a pause in the schedule.

Just five minutes later than planned, Q1 began. Lando Norris immediately showed strong pace and set the fastest time with a 1:04.672. Max Verstappen was over four-tenths of a second behind, and Oscar Piastri, after a small off-track moment at Turn 4, recovered to go second fastest.

At the other end of the field, Carlos Sainz was again in trouble. Driving what he described as an “undriveable” Williams, he failed to reach Q2 for the third weekend in a row. Nico Hulkenberg also struggled and ended the session in last place. Yuki Tsunoda missed out too, although he was only a quarter of a second slower than Verstappen. Esteban Ocon and Lance Stroll were also eliminated in Q1.

Q2

In Q2, the remaining 15 drivers battled for a place in the top 10. Ferrari made the first move with Charles Leclerc setting the pace on used soft tyres, just ahead of Lewis Hamilton. But McLaren quickly responded. Oscar Piastri went half a second faster, and then Lando Norris found even more time to go quickest with a lap of 1:04.410.

Max Verstappen was growing frustrated with his car and said over the radio that it was “completely undriveable.” Before anyone could improve further, a small grass fire broke out near the final corner of the track. The session was red-flagged once again while marshals brought the fire under control.

After a short delay, qualifying resumed with just under six minutes left. Gabriel Bortoleto delivered a surprise by jumping to third place, earning applause from the Sauber garage. As the final laps came in, McLaren once again locked out the top two spots, with Norris ahead of Piastri.

Five drivers were eliminated at the end of Q2. Oliver Bearman missed out in 15th. Franco Colapinto and Isack Hadjar also failed to reach Q3. Alexander Albon qualified 12th, and Fernando Alonso was just outside the top 10 in 11th place.

Meanwhile, Verstappen was unhappy with Lewis Hamilton, accusing him of blocking at Turn 3. The stewards also took note of a separate impeding incident involving Norris and Leclerc.

Q3

The final session of qualifying began slowly, as the ten remaining drivers waited in the pits before heading out for the battle for pole. When they finally did, the drama continued. George Russell was nearly released straight into the path of both Ferraris, and Verstappen was caught in the middle of the action. The incident was noted by race stewards.

Once on track, Lando Norris delivered a fantastic lap of 1:03.971 to take provisional pole. Charles Leclerc came closest but was still over half a second behind. Verstappen was only sixth after his first run and was unable to improve.

Just as drivers prepared for their final attempts, Pierre Gasly spun at the final corner, bringing out yellow flags. Verstappen had to abort his final lap, and Piastri was also affected by the yellow flag zone. Norris, however, was not held up and managed to find even more time to confirm a dominant pole position.

At the end of Q3, Lando Norris claimed pole position for McLaren with a stunning lap. Charles Leclerc will start alongside him on the front row in second place. Oscar Piastri secured third, making it two McLarens in the top three. Lewis Hamilton qualified fourth, just ahead of George Russell in fifth. Liam Lawson put in an excellent lap for Racing Bulls and will start sixth. Max Verstappen could only manage seventh, ending his run of poles at the Red Bull Ring. Gabriel Bortoleto will start eighth for Sauber, with Kimi Antonelli ninth for Mercedes. Pierre Gasly completed the top ten.