ABU DHABI, United Arab Emirates — Lando Norris took pole position for the last Formula 1 race of the season Saturday alongside teammate Oscar Piastri to put McLaren on the verge of a first constructors’ title in 26 years.
Norris’ last lap put him .209 of a second faster than Piastri, with Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz Jr. .020 further back. Nico Hulkenberg was a surprise fourth for Haas and champion Max Verstappen fifth.
Sainz’s teammate Charles Leclerc was 14th in the second part of qualifying and already has a 10-place grid penalty, likely ending Ferrari’s hopes of overhauling McLaren’s 21-point lead in the constructors’ standings.
Seven-time F1 champion Lewis Hamilton is set to start his last race with Mercedes from 18th on the grid after a bizarre incident wrecked his final qualifying lap.
A plastic pole marking the inside of a corner was knocked loose by Kevin Magnussen’s Haas and Hamilton drove over it, leaving the object jammed under his Mercedes.
Hamilton was already among the slowest in the first part of qualifying and he was eliminated shortly after.
“I messed that up big time, guys,” Hamilton told the team over the radio.
Hamilton is moving to Ferrari for 2025 after 12 years with Mercedes, where he won six drivers’ titles.
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