Beaten by twelve thousandths, Norris "tips his hat" to Verstappen for pole at Suzuka

He thought he had it, his second pole position of the season. Lando Norris did almost everything right, setting the record for the first sector and taking the fastest time ten seconds from the end of the session... but that was without taking into account the merciless Max Verstappen who produced a time that came out of nowhere. The gap at the finish line? Only twelve thousandths of a second in favor of the Dutchman! The Briton, beaten at the last minute, did not just bow to his opponent who took a pole position that seemed destined for the McLaren.

BUT WHERE DID THIS CHRONO COME FROM? 🤯🤯

MAX VERSTAPPEN TAKES POLE POSITION AT SUZUKA! 🇯🇵#JapaneseGP #F1 pic.twitter.com/TS6QihO1J9

— CANAL+ F1® (@CanalplusF1) April 5, 2025

Faced with such a performance from Max Verstappen, Lando Norris didn't even seem disappointed when he gave his first reaction to the F1 microphone. Aware of the potential of his MCL39, the championship leader knows he still has every chance on Sunday, for the Japanese Grand Prix where, as in Australia, rain could interfere and disrupt the race.

Lando Norris (McLaren), 2nd in qualifying for the Japanese GP : “I’m happy. Congratulations to Max, he did a good job. Hats off to him; you have to recognize when someone sets such a good lap. I’m satisfied because I got the most out of the car today. [The gaps] are very small: was there a way to get [pole position]? Yes, but Max set an incredible lap. We’re both happy: it’s good to fight for pole, but it wasn’t enough.”

“I put two wheels [off track] coming out of Turn 7, and that’s the last place you want to make a mistake. I made a few mistakes, and it shows how easy it is to lose time. Nevertheless, my lap was very good. If I had to do it again, I probably wouldn’t be as quick as I was here. We were at the limit of what we have, but it was lacking today. (…) That's the goal [to get another win for McLaren], but we have to see what the weather does tomorrow. It could be a race like Australia, but it will be exciting. We want to overtake Max, he won't let himself be pushed around, but I've been through that before." 

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