Lando Norris edges Oscar Piastri for pole position at Australian Grand Prix

Aussie F1 star Oscar Piastri came agonisingly close to etching his name into the record books, but it wasn’t to be for the hometown hero.

Lando Norris has claimed pole position for the Australian Grand Prix after a blistering lap in Q3 on Saturday.

Norris claimed the first win of the 2025 season after pipping his teammate Oscar Piastri by 0.084 on Saturday.

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The McLaren duo, widely regarded as the team to beat this season, flexed their muscles around Albert Park as they distanced themselves from the grid.

Four-time world champion Max Verstappen finished the qualifying session in third, 0.385 seconds behind Piastri.

While Piastri will start from the front row, finishing behind his teammate left the hometown hero dejected.

“It’s obviously great to start the year on the front row. Probably one position further back than I would have liked,” Piastri said after qualifying.

“It’s a great start to the year and great to have the team on the front row. Now we reset and see what tomorrow has in store.

“Pretty happy with how qualifying went, just not quite enough in Q3. But, it’s the start of a long season.”

It wasn’t to be for Oscar. Picture: David Caird

Mercedes’ George Russell will start the race from fourth, but it’s the third row of the grid where the real shock unfolded.

Yuki Tsunoda, who was overlooked for the seat alongside Verstappen at Red Bull, crossed in fifth place in his Racing Bulls car.

He was marginally ahead of Alex Albon, with both Williams drivers finishing inside the top 10.

While the heat was beaming down on the track on Saturday, the forecast for Sunday paints a very wet picture.

Australian Grand Prix starting grid

First row: Lando Norris (McLaren), Oscar Piastri (McLaren)

Second row: Max Verstappen (Red Bull), George Russell (Mercedes)

Third row: Yuki Tsunoda (Racing Bulls) Alex Albon (Williams)

Fourth row: Charles Leclerc (Ferrari), Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari)

Fifth row: Pierre Gasly (Alpine), Carlos Sainz (Williams)

Sixth row: Isack Hadjar (Racing Bulls), Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin)

Seventh row: Lance Stroll (Aston Martin), Jack Doohan (Alpine)

Eighth row: Gabriel Bortoleto (Kick Sauber), Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes)

Ninth row: Nico Hulkenberg (Kick Sauber), Liam Lawson (Red Bull)

Tenth row: Esteban Ocon (Haas), Ollie Bearman (Haas)

Norris claimed the first pole position for 2025. Picture: Mark Stewart

F1 rookies endure nightmare session

Kick Sauber rookie Gabriel Bortoleto delivered the first jaw-dropping moment of the season when he pipped fellow star rookie Kimi Antonelli in Q1.

Despite being in the Mercedes, Antonelli was knocked out during the first qualifying session with Bortoleto crossing the line 0.009 ahead.

Antonelli wasn’t the only star rookie to be eliminated however with Red Bull rookie Liam Lawson enduring a horror session.

The Kiwi youngster’s final flying lap fell apart as he ended up on the grass around the second last corner before abandoning the lap all together.

Lawson couldn’t keep it together during qualifying. (Photo by Paul Crock / AFP)

Haas rookie Ollie Bearman has spent barely any time on the track around Albert Park with the youngster crashing twice across the opening two days.

Bearman crashed out of the opening practice session on Friday in a monster accident that ultimately left him stranded in the garage for the entirety of the second practice session.

After the Haas mechanics were able to piece the car back together, Bearman was back out on track on Saturday when the third practice session got underway.

Bearman has endured a horror weekend. (Photo by Paul Crock / AFP)

But in the blink of an eye the 19-year-old was once again off the circuit as he found himself beached in the gravel on his first push lap.

Things went from bad to worse for the youngster when qualifying officially got underway with Bearman telling his crew he was having gearbox issues.

Ultimately he was forced back into the pits after failing to complete a single lap with his session coming to an end.

It means he will start his first Grand Prix from the back of the grid. The Australian Grand Prixs will get underway on Sunday, March 16 from 3pm (AEDT).

Originally published as Lando Norris edges Oscar Piastri for pole position at Australian Grand Prix