Lando Norris, the reigning world champion, broke Mercedes' pole‑position streak in the 2026 season by delivering the fastest lap in Sprint Qualifying for the Miami Grand Prix. His McLaren, now equipped with a substantial upgrade package, topped the grid with a lap time of 1:27.869, marking the first time a non‑Mercedes driver has claimed pole this year.
The Miami event marked the first race weekend after a five‑week hiatus, and it immediately reshaped the hierarchy that had been established during the opening three rounds in March. While Mercedes entered the weekend with a relatively modest set of updates, their rivals – McLaren, Ferrari and Red Bull – all introduced extensive aerodynamic and mechanical modifications. The result was a dramatic reshuffle of performance levels, with McLaren emerging as the surprise front‑runner.
Norris, who had yet to finish higher than fourth in either a Sprint or a Grand Prix during his title defence, produced a flawless final lap in the Sprint Qualifying session. His effort not only earned him his first pole of the year but also sent a clear signal that McLaren's upgraded MCL40 is now capable of challenging the traditional front‑row teams. Championship leader Kimi Antonelli, driving for Mercedes, secured second place, just two‑tenths off Norris's time.
George Russell, Antonelli's teammate, struggled throughout the session and could only manage sixth on the grid. Mercedes' upgrade programme for Miami was comparatively light. The team plans to unveil a more comprehensive package at the next race in Canada, where they hope to regain the pace advantage they enjoyed at Suzuka. In the meantime, the stark contrast in performance between Mercedes and its rivals was evident.
"Pretty surprising how big a jump McLaren and Ferrari made. That's pretty damn impressive," Russell admitted after the session.
He added, "We knew they had probably closed the gap but all day they were quicker than us." Behind Norris, Oscar Piastri completed the podium in third place, reinforcing the notion that McLaren is returning to its former glory. Ferrari's Charles Leclerc, who had topped the sole practice session and led the second qualifying segment (SQ2), finished fourth. His performance suggested that the SF‑26, now fitted with eleven distinct upgrades, could be a serious contender for future pole positions. Max Verstappen, representing Red Bull, claimed fifth place, indicating that the Dutchman's team is also benefitting from its recent upgrades.
Lewis Hamilton, driving the second Ferrari, rounded out the top eight in seventh position, while his teammate, Leclerc, remained about three‑tenths of a second ahead throughout the day. Red Bull's improvement was further highlighted by the gap between Verstappen and his teammate Isack Hadjar, who was 0.8 seconds slower and settled for ninth place behind the Alpine drivers Franco Colapinto and Pierre Gasly.
Aston Martin, on the other hand, chose not to introduce any aerodynamic changes for the weekend, and despite Honda's efforts to address persistent vibration issues in their power unit, the team remained near the back of the field. Lance Stroll failed to set a time after spinning early and ending up in the run‑off area, while Fernando Alonso's 21st‑fastest lap was an outlier, sitting roughly ten seconds off the pace of the cars that qualified directly ahead of him. The provisional top ten after Sprint Qualifying was as follows: 1.
Lando Norris (McLaren) 2. Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes) 3. Oscar Piastri (McLaren) 4. Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) 5.
Max Verstappen (Red Bull) 6. George Russell (Mercedes) 7. Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari) 8. Franco Colapinto (Alpine) 9.
Isack Hadjar (Red Bull) 10. Pierre Gasly (Alpine) McLaren's resurgence was evident not just in the pole position but also in the overall performance of the upgraded MCL40. At Suzuka, the team had shown promising signs, with Piastri finishing second to Antonelli.
However, the Miami results suggest that McLaren has moved from being a contender to a genuine front‑runner in the new regulatory era. Norris himself described his feelings after the session: "I feel very good. I'm very happy for the team. It's always a lot of expectations.
A lot of work has gone into trying to bring these upgrades and it's always just difficult to anticipate or to know what to expect coming into a new weekend. But since lap one, literally, turn one, everything felt better. It felt a little bit more like last year with just having some confidence in the car. And I felt like I exploited that through the whole day today.
So, a nice start to the weekend. Probably better than we were expecting, honestly. We were expecting better of course but we didn't know in terms of quantity how it was going to be. So, a little surprise, but a pleasant one for sure." The weekend schedule continued with a series of supporting events.
On Saturday, May 2, the F2 Sprint kicked off at 2:55 pm, followed by build‑up shows for the Miami GP Sprint at 4:00 pm and the main Sprint session at 5:00 pm. Later in the evening, Ted's Sprint Notebook aired at 6:30 pm, with additional build‑up programming for the Grand Prix qualifying at 8:00 pm and the qualifying session itself at 9:00 pm. The day concluded with Ted's Qualifying Notebook at 11:00 pm. Sunday, May 3, featured the F2 Feature Race at 5:25 pm, a pre‑Grand Prix build‑up at 7:00 pm, and the Miami Grand Prix itself at 9:00 pm.
Post‑race coverage, including the Chequered Flag reaction and Ted's Notebook, aired throughout the night, with the final segment ending at 12:00 am. All of these broadcasts were also available on Sky Sports Main Event. For fans wanting to watch the action live, the Sprint weekend and the subsequent Grand Prix were streamed on Sky Sports F1, with the option to access the feed via the NOW platform, which offers a contract‑free, cancel‑anytime service. This accessibility ensures that viewers can follow the unfolding drama of the 2026 season, where a surprise pole by Lando Norris may well signal a shift in the competitive balance as the championship progresses.