DOHA: Lando Norris lifted the spirits of his title-chasing McLaren team on Friday when he powered to pole position ahead of Mercedes’ George Russell in qualifying for Saturday’s sprint race at the Qatar Grand Prix.
After a disappointing outing in Las Vegas, where his drivers’ title hopes ended as Max Verstappen clinched his fourth championship with Red Bull, the British driver was back on top form under the lights at the Lusail International Circuit.
Norris clocked a best time in one minute and 21.012 seconds to outpace Russell, the winner in Nevada, by just 0.063 seconds at the end of a closely-fought session. Oscar Piastri in the second McLaren was third.
“It’s tough,” said Norris of his laps and the speed of the track.
“It is so quick around here. It feels like the quickest of the year and in the final sector you feel like you are just hanging on.
“I want to win and I want to win every session as a driver. Our target tomorrow is a one-two so we maximize the points for our constructors’ but we know Mercedes and Ferrari will be quick.”
The Ferraris of Carlos Sainz and Charles Leclerc qualified fourth and fifth ahead of Verstappen and seven-time champion Lewis Hamilton in the second Mercedes, an outcome that was not enough to buoy hopes that the Italian team can stop McLaren claiming their first constructors’ title in 26 years.
Pierre Gasly took an impressive eighth for Alpine ahead of Nico Hulkenberg of Haas and RB’s Liam Lawson.
McLaren hold a 24 points lead in the teams’ title race with 608 to Ferrari on 584.
With two Grands Prix remaining, including one sprint, McLaren can clinch the title with a dominant weekend ahead of Ferrari in both the sprint and Sunday’s Grand Prix.
In cooling conditions with temperatures of 19 (air) and 22 (track) falling as darkness descended, Kevin Magnussen set the early benchmark time for Haas in 1:23.750 before the ‘big boys’ joined the fray, Sainz soon going top.
Norris then gave notice of his intentions with a lap in 1:22.785, but it was not enough as speeds increased with the drop in temperature and Ferrari took advantage with Leclerc and Sainz on top.
With three minutes remaining in SQ1, Norris bounced back in 1:22.021, a time Russell equalled exactly with the same lap time. Piastri, last year’s winner, went fourth, six-tenths off his team-mate’s best time.
Norris trimmed his time to 1:21.356 in the final seconds to finish four-tenths clear of Sainz, six-tenths ahead of Russell and Verstappen with Hamilton fifth.
But it was another painful session for Sergio Perez of Red Bull who exited in Q1 along with RB’s Yuki Tsunoda, Alpine’s Esteban Ocon, Zhou Guanyu of Sauber and Williams’ Franco Colapinto.
As prescribed, all of the cars ran on medium compound tires and nearly all of them were under investigation by the stewards for driving too slowly, at times, in SQ1 as they ‘backed up’ to seek a ‘tow’.
The SQ2 segment began with Verstappen on top before Leclerc took over in 1:22.130 and then Piastri in 1:22.050, the leading teams all very clothed matched.
With two minutes to go, Norris was back in control in 1:22.231 ahead of Russell and Piastri with Verstappen fourth until Hamilton knocked him down to fifth ahead of the two Ferraris.
Out this time went two-time champion Fernando Alonso of Aston Martin, Williams’ Alex Albon, Valtteri Bottas of Sauber, Lance Stroll in the second Aston Martin and Magnussen.
The top ten shootout began with Leclerc in a hurry to clock 1:21.706, as they all switched to softs, Norris lapping in 1:21.012 for top spot with Piastri a tenth down in second. McLaren looked imperious.
Norris boosts McLaren title hopes with sprint pole
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Norris boosts McLaren title hopes with sprint pole
- Norris clocked a best time in one minute and 21.012 seconds to outpace Russell, the winner in Nevada, by just 0.063 seconds at the end of a closely-fought session
- Oscar Piastri in the second McLaren was third
4 former champions prepare for battle at Dubai Tennis Championships 2026
- Past winners Daniil Medvedev, Andrey Rublev, Ugo Humbert, Stefanos Tsitsipas return this month
DUBAI: From Roger Federer’s record eight titles to Novak Djokovic’s domination — three successive wins from 2009 to 2011 — the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships have long proved an event popular with former champions. And that tradition will continue this month as a quartet of previous men’s winners prepare to compete once more.
From Feb. 23-28, Daniil Medvedev, Andrey Rublev, Ugo Humbert, and Stefanos Tsitsipas will all feature, promising a mix of elite competition, dramatic storylines, and the unmistakable glamour that has made the ATP 500 event a highlight on the men’s calendar.
Coming a week after the city’s WTA 1000 tournament featuring all the world’s top 20 female players, the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Stadium in Al-Garhoud will light up once again with a field that includes eight of the world’s top 20 male players.
This year marks the first time since 2023 that Medvedev — ranked No. 12 in the world — is not the tournament’s top seed. He won his only Dubai title in 2023, beating that year’s top seed Djokovic in the semifinal. A former world No. 1, Medvedev is considered one of the most imposing hard-court players of his generation, with strong defensive resilience and surgical precision from the baseline.
Within 18 months of lifting the Silver Dhow Trophy, Medvedev had reached two consecutive semifinals at Wimbledon and the final of the Australian Open. A second Grand Slam title to accompany his 2021 US Open title remains elusive, but this year he has got off to a strong start with victory in Brisbane bringing a 22nd ATP title. The Muscovite’s return to Dubai will be watched by throngs of fans eager to see whether the popular 29-year-old can dominate under the Dubai lights once more.
Among those standing in Medvedev’s way — aside from this month’s top seed Felix Auger-Aliassime, world No. 10 Alexander Bublik, and British No. 1 Jack Draper — is his flame-haired compatriot Rublev, a winner in Dubai in 2022. If Medvedev embodies control, Rublev brings chaos, shuttling around the court and overwhelming opponents with raw power and relentless intensity.
The Dubai tournament’s timing early in the season, coupled with its consistent conditions, suits his aggressive baseline style, and as he chases an 18th career title, he will be eager to rediscover the sharpness and conviction that carried him to glory four years ago.
The 2024 tournament, in which Rublev defaulted in the final four, provided a surprise winner as Frenchman Humbert beat Bublik in the final to secure what was only his second ATP 500 title. Humbert was the fifth seed, but few fancied him to come through a tough draw that pitted him against compatriot Gael Monfils, three-time Grand Slam winner Andy Murray, No. 3 seed Hubert Hurkacz, then-world No. 4 Medvedev, and Bublik. Yet aside from an opening match wobble and a tough battle with Hurkacz in the last eight, he did so without dropping a set.
Left-handed, elegant, and evidently fearless, Humbert’s success resonated with fans who were reminded that Dubai is not only a stage for established stars, but also a launchpad for the next generation. His return this month will be closely followed as he looks to utilize fond memories and the confidence they can bring.
Completing the quartet is Tsitsipas, the reigning champion who finally clinched his long-awaited Dubai crown after years of near misses. Following back-to-back final defeats in 2019 and 2020 to Federer and Djokovic, the Greek produced an assured performance to beat Auger-Aliassime to lift the trophy, his first ATP 500 title, and re-enter the world top 10. The 27-year-old’s stylish all-court game has long captivated audiences, but if he is to defend his title this month, he will be achieving a feat no player has managed since Federer in 2015.
