George Russell takes Dutch GP Sprint pole as Antonelli and Hamilton qualify outside top four
George Russell has claimed pole position for the Dutch Grand Prix Sprint, marking a strong start to the second half of the 2026 F1 season. His nearest title rivals, Kimi Antonelli and Lewis Hamilton, qualified outside the top four.
Russell’s performance at Zandvoort saw him secure his third Sprint pole of the season. His final SQ3 lap time of 1:11.567 placed him ahead of McLaren’s Lando Norris and Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc by less than a tenth of a second.
Championship leader Antonelli finished fifth quickest. His session was affected after his car sustained damage during a trip through the gravel on his first lap of SQ1. Hamilton, currently second in the standings, qualified seventh.
Russell’s Return to Form
Russell’s pole position comes after a challenging end to the first half of the year. He had scored only six points in the two races leading up to the summer break. He expressed satisfaction with his performance, stating that the lap felt good and came together nicely, especially given the single soft-tyre run format of Sprint Qualifying.
The Briton’s performance was notable as he had been fifth and fourth fastest in the initial knockout segments, two tenths off the pace. However, he proved more competitive in the final phase, denying Norris the fastest time. Oscar Piastri, in the second McLaren, secured fourth place, just 0.009s behind pole.
Max Verstappen of Red Bull qualified sixth at his home event, half a second off the front. His team had a disappointing opening day. Verstappen and Hamilton were reportedly closer in lap times to Alpine’s Pierre Gasly, who qualified eighth, than to the pole sitter.
Rivals Face Challenges
Antonelli confirmed that his car, the W17, sustained damage to its underside after sliding wide through the gravel in SQ1. He noted that there were holes in the floor, leading to a loss of downforce despite repair efforts. This damage impacted his performance, particularly in low-speed corners, and made it difficult to regain confidence.
Hamilton, who trails Antonelli by 50 points in the Drivers’ Championship, qualified seventh. Russell is a further nine points behind Antonelli. Points are awarded to the top eight finishers in the 24-lap Sprint, with eight points for the winner.
Norris expressed some disappointment at missing out on pole, describing it as “a little bit disappointing to be P2.” He noted that the gap was very tight, and while he was reasonably happy with a good position, he felt he could have pushed a bit more on the soft tyre in SQ3. Piastri also commented on the challenge of switching to the soft compound, stating that his soft lap was not as good as his medium tyre performance.
Other notable qualifiers include Gasly in eighth, Audi’s Gabriel Bortoleto in ninth, and Racing Bulls’ Arvid Lindblad in tenth. Lindblad secured the final top-10 spot, denying Liam Lawson, who is racing for the senior Red Bull team this weekend in place of the injured Isack Hadjar. Lawson had outpaced Verstappen in the first session but missed an SQ3 berth by three tenths of a second.
Yuki Tsunoda, standing in for Lawson at Racing Bulls, qualified 12th. Fernando Alonso qualified last in the Aston Martin due to a problem with his AMR26‘s straight-line mode, which cost him crucial lap time. The Dutch GP Sprint is scheduled for Saturday at 11am.
Source: skysports.com
Isla Hartley is a Sports Reporter at NewsUK. She covered the British summer of sport from Wimbledon to the Test grounds. She focuses on tennis, cricket and athletics and is known for clear, deadline-driven reporting. She holds a degree in Sports Studies from the University of Stirling and completed an NCTJ diploma. Now based in Glasgow, she runs half-marathons and follows Scottish athletics. “The overlooked athlete usually has the better story.”
