Oscar Piastri secures pole position for the Spanish GP, leading a dominant McLaren 1-2 in Barcelona as Ferrari continues to struggle.
It’s qualifying time at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya, host of this weekend’s Spanish Grand Prix. Round nine of the 2025 F1 season carries both sporting and technical intrigue.
The key question is whether McLaren can maintain its edge over rivals or if, as seen at Imola, Red Bull has now matched the MCL39 thanks to its updates. The race will provide the real answer.
However, this afternoon already offers a glimpse of the impact of Technical Directive TD018, which mandates reduced front wing flexibility. Christian Horner has long claimed it would slow McLaren, while Frédéric Vasseur is convinced Ferrari will benefit.
So far, nothing has confirmed either prediction during free practice, but the clock will be the true judge come Q3. In the midfield, the hierarchy could also be reshuffled.
15:40 – There is still no threat of rain for this session.
15:54 – Air temperature holds steady at 29°C, just like yesterday, while track temperature has risen slightly to 48°C since this morning.
Q1 – 18 minutes
16:02 – Lance Stroll is the first to begin a flying lap.
16:04 – He sets a 1:13.699, clearly ahead of Franco Colapinto and Esteban Ocon. Alex Albon cannot go faster either.
16:05 – More drivers join the track, including the Ferraris, Red Bulls, Mercedes, and McLarens.
16:08 – Nico Hülkenberg takes the top spot with a 1:13.499, though others are improving.
16:09 – Liam Lawson goes quicker with a 1:13.482. Carlos Sainz moves into third. Lando Norris sets the best time at 1:12.799, with George Russell just 0.007 behind. Andrea Kimi Antonelli is third briefly, until Isack Hadjar betters him.
16:10 – Oscar Piastri jumps to the top with a 1:12.551. Pierre Gasly moves into sixth. Albon climbs to fourth. Yuki Tsunoda asks for his floor to be checked after hitting a kerb. Lewis Hamilton goes sixth temporarily, and Charles Leclerc moves into fourth.
16:11 – Fernando Alonso slots into sixth, and Max Verstappen places himself between the two McLarens, 0.247 off Piastri. Stroll improves to 14th.
16:13 – There’s just four-tenths of a second between seventh and 16th, meaning a Q3 spot or Q1 elimination. Colapinto holds an impressive 11th, just 0.783 behind Piastri and only three-tenths off the top five.
16:15 – Bad luck for Colapinto, who’s stationary in the pit lane, holding up others. The Sauber drivers are on their final Q1 laps.
16:16 – Bortoleto completes his lap with a strong seventh time. The track is rapidly improving.
16:17 – Antonelli moves up to fifth. Gasly is ninth. Sainz still struggles. Piastri, Verstappen, and Russell return to the garage.
16:18 – Sainz only manages 13th, well behind teammate Albon in provisional seventh. Norris and Leclerc also return to the pits. Lawson grabs seventh.
16:19 – Ocon takes 15th and eliminates Sainz. Bearman moves into 11th, knocking out his teammate. Tsunoda remains 19th. Stroll jumps to seventh.
Eliminated – Hülkenberg, Ocon, Sainz, Colapinto, and Tsunoda.
16:22 – “Honestly, I don’t know what’s happening,” says Yuki Tsunoda after finishing last.
Q2 – 15 minutes
16:25 – Albon and Alonso are first on track.
16:27 – Unexpectedly, dark clouds are forming over the eastern side of the circuit.
16:28 – Albon sets a 1:13.113. Bearman is half a second behind.
16:29 – Colapinto’s gearbox has failed.
16:30 – Verstappen takes the lead with a 1:12.358.
16:31 – Lawson and Bortoleto slot into second, the latter seven-tenths behind Verstappen. Gasly takes second within three-tenths, and Hadjar climbs into third.
16:32 – Norris moves into the lead with a 1:12.056. Alonso takes third, soon bettered by Leclerc, who is still four-tenths off Norris. Hamilton goes third ahead of his teammate. Piastri sets a stunning 1:11.998 to lead.
16:33 – Antonelli posts the eighth fastest time. Russell climbs to fourth ahead of the Ferraris.
16:37 – Drivers head out again for their final Q2 runs.
16:39 – Stroll improves but stays 12th, just 0.066 away from safety. Antonelli gains a spot at Gasly’s expense.
16:40 – Albon edges into 10th. Bortoleto improves to 11th. Hadjar records the sixth fastest time. Lawson finishes 13th. Just three-tenths separate the Racing Bulls pair, yet that covers seven positions.
16:41 – Bearman improves but remains 15th.
Eliminated – Albon, Bortoleto, Lawson, Stroll, and Bearman.
16:42 – Albon criticizes Bearman’s Haas for deliberately holding him up: “Dirty, dirty! The Haas guys… they knew exactly what we were doing and were super slow in sector three.”
Q3 – 12 minutes
16:49 – Drivers head out quickly, led by McLaren and Mercedes.
16:51 – Piastri clocks a 1:11.836 as Norris starts his lap. Antonelli posts a 1:12.915. Russell is two-tenths off Piastri.
16:52 – Verstappen only manages third, nearly half a second behind the McLaren.
16:53 – In sector two, Norris and Piastri are separated by just 0.001. Norris edges ahead with a 1:11.819, 0.017 quicker than his teammate.
16:54 – Hamilton is sixth. Leclerc moves into fourth, ahead of Verstappen.
16:55 – Russell complains about lacking Antonelli’s tow, falling two-tenths short of the McLarens. When Piastri was told Norris was looking for his slipstream, he moved aside and said, “Cheeky.” Some light-hearted games at McLaren.
16:56 – Alonso grabs fifth, less than half a second off Norris, and ahead of Verstappen.
16:59 – Norris improves in sector one, but Piastri is seven-thousandths faster. Meanwhile, Hadjar goes fifth.
17:00 – Gasly takes fifth. Norris sets a 1:11.755, but Piastri improves to 1:11.546, two-tenths faster. Antonelli climbs to fourth.
17:01 – Hamilton goes third, before Verstappen takes back third. Russell improves but remains fourth, tied to the thousandth with Verstappen.
Final result – Piastri takes pole ahead of Norris, confirming McLaren’s status as the benchmark even under the new front wing regulations. Verstappen starts third alongside Russell on row two. Hamilton and Antonelli lock out row three, followed by Leclerc and Gasly. Hadjar and Alonso will start from row five.
| Pos. | Pilote | Q1 | Q2 | Q3 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | Oscar Piastri | 1:12.551 | 1:11.998 | 1:11.546 |
| 02 | Lando Norris | 1:12.799 | 1:12.056 | 1:11.755 |
| 03 | Max Verstappen | 1:12.798 | 1:12.358 | 1:11.848 |
| 04 | George Russell | 1:12.806 | 1:12.407 | 1:11.848 |
| 05 | Lewis Hamilton | 1:13.058 | 1:12.447 | 1:12.045 |
| 06 | Kimi Antonelli | 1:12.815 | 1:12.585 | 1:12.111 |
| 07 | Charles Leclerc | 1:13.014 | 1:12.495 | 1:12.131 |
| 08 | Pierre Gasly | 1:13.081 | 1:12.611 | 1:12.199 |
| 09 | Isack Hadjar | 1:13.139 | 1:12.461 | 1:12.252 |
| 10 | Fernando Alonso | 1:13.102 | 1:12.523 | 1:12.284 |
| — | —————- | ———- | ———- | ———- |
| 11 | Alex Albon | 1:13.044 | 1:12.641 | |
| 12 | Gabriel Bortoleto | 1:13.045 | 1:12.756 | |
| 13 | Liam Lawson | 1:13.039 | 1:12.763 | |
| 14 | Lance Stroll | 1:13.038 | 1:13.058 | |
| 15 | Oliver Bearman | 1:13.074 | 1:13.315 | |
| — | —————- | ———- | ———- | ———- |
| 16 | Nico Hülkenberg | 1:13.190 | ||
| 17 | Esteban Ocon | 1:13.201 | ||
| 18 | Carlos Sainz | 1:13.203 | ||
| 19 | Franco Colapinto | 1:13.334 | ||
| 20 | Yuki Tsunoda | 1:13.384 |
- Discover More>2025 F1 Spanish GP – FP3 Results – A dominant session for McLaren
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