World champion Lando Norris broke Mercedes' grip on pole positions in the 2026 season by delivering the fastest lap in Sprint Qualifying for the Miami Grand Prix, putting McLaren’s freshly upgraded car at the head of the grid for the Saturday sprint race. After a five‑week hiatus, Formula 1 resumed in Miami, and the usual Mercedes‑led hierarchy that had defined the opening three rounds in March was upended by a wave of technical upgrades across the leading teams. Norris, who had not yet finished higher than fourth in any sprint or Grand Prix during his title‑defence, produced a benchmark lap of 1:27.869 around the Miami International Autodrome, earning his first pole of the year and marking the first time a non‑Mercedes driver had claimed pole in the current campaign. Championship leader Kimi Antonelli, driving for Mercedes, secured second place, just two tenths off Norris’s time, while his teammate George Russell struggled throughout the session and ultimately qualified only sixth.
McLaren, Ferrari and Red Bull all introduced extensive aerodynamic and mechanical upgrades for the Miami weekend, whereas Mercedes opted for a more modest package, planning a larger set of changes for the next round in Canada. The stark contrast in performance gains was evident when Russell remarked, "Pretty surprising how big a jump McLaren and Ferrari made.
That's pretty damn impressive," adding that the Mercedes cars had been consistently slower throughout the day despite having narrowed the gap earlier in the season. Oscar Piastri completed the podium in third place, underscoring McLaren’s resurgence, while Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc, who had topped the sole practice session and led SQ2, finished fourth after an impressive run in the SF‑26, a car now equipped with eleven different upgrades. Red Bull’s Max Verstappen claimed fifth, showing that the Dutchman’s recent upgrades were beginning to pay off, while his teammate Isack Hadjar lagged 0.8 seconds behind and settled for ninth. Lewis Hamilton, now driving for Ferrari, recorded a seventh‑place time, trailing Leclerc by roughly three‑tenths of a second throughout the day.
Aston Martin was the only team that did not bring any aerodynamic modifications to Miami, and despite Honda’s efforts to eliminate vibration issues in their power unit, the team remained at the back of the field. Lance Stroll failed to set a time after spinning early into the run‑off area, and Fernando Alonso’s 21st‑fastest lap was an unrepresentative ten seconds slower than the Cadillacs that qualified directly ahead of him. The top ten after sprint qualifying were 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).
This lineup highlighted how McLaren, the reigning two‑time constructors’ champions, have turned a corner since their modest performance at Suzuka, where Piastri had finished second to Antonelli. The heavily upgraded MCL‑40 now appears to have restored the team to front‑running status, and Norris’s pole position is a clear sign that the Briton is capitalising on the car’s newfound pace. Norris’s weekend had been a study in consistency and resilience. He topped SQ1, then made a minor mistake in SQ2 that dropped him to seventh in that segment.
Nevertheless, he recovered spectacularly in the final qualifying phase, becoming the only driver to break the 88‑second barrier with a single flying lap. Reflecting on his performance, Norris said, "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 sprint weekend schedule was packed with supporting events.
On Saturday, May 2, the F2 Sprint began at 2.55 pm, followed by a Miami GP Sprint build‑up at 4 pm, the sprint itself at 5 pm, and Ted’s Sprint Notebook at 6.30 pm. The evening featured a build‑up to qualifying at 8 pm, the sprint qualifying session at 9 pm, and finally Ted’s Qualifying Notebook at 11 pm, all broadcast on Sky Sports Main Event.
Sunday, May 3, saw the F2 Feature Race at 5.25 pm, a Grand Prix build‑up at 7 pm, the Miami Grand Prix at 9 pm, a post‑race reaction segment at 11 pm, and Ted’s final notebook at midnight. Overall, the Miami sprint illustrated how quickly the competitive order can shift when teams introduce substantial upgrades. McLaren’s aggressive development program has paid dividends, allowing Norris to claim a pole that had been the exclusive domain of Mercedes for the season thus far.
Ferrari’s upgrades have also narrowed the gap, as evidenced by Leclerc’s strong qualifying performance, while Red Bull appears to be regaining its footing after a period of midfield runs in China and Japan. Mercedes, meanwhile, faces a crucial test in Canada, where a larger upgrade package is expected to restore its dominance.
For fans, the Miami sprint offered a thrilling glimpse of a season that promises to be fiercely contested, with multiple teams now capable of challenging for pole positions and race victories as the 2026 championship unfolds.