McLaren’s Oscar Piastri snatched pole position for the 2025 Emilia Romagna Grand Prix in a dramatic Qualifying session.
Piastri overcame tough opposition from Max Verstappen and FP3 topper – Lando Norris throughout Qualifying to claim his third pole position of the season, in a session which was disrupted by two red flags and extensive delays in Q1.
FP3
In a quiet start to the session, Norris was the first driver to venture out onto the track for an installation lap followed by Aston Martin’s Lance Stroll and Fernando Alonso, with the trio all briefly running the hard tyre.
Ferrari’s Lewis Hamilton set the first benchmark time of 1m 16.983 in the tenth minute on medium tyres but Alpine’s Pierre Gasly went 0.304 seconds quicker just six minutes later, yet Hamilton immediately responded with 1m 15.866 barely a minute later.
Piastri went quickest with 1m 15.833 in the 20th minute but barely seconds later, Verstappen snatched the fastest lap time with 1m 15.579 which he then lowered to 1m 15.130 at the half-way mark, after he was briefly displaced by Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc then Racing Bulls’ Isack Hadjar who posted 1m 15.508 in the 24th minute.
With 33 minutes gone, Verstappen found a further 0.052s to lower his benchmark time to 1m 15.130 ahead of the soft tyre qualifying simulations.
A lot of drivers initially struggled to find grip on the soft C6 tyre but with 14 minutes left on the clock, Norris found 0.181s to set the fastest lap time of the session with 1m 14.897, whilst Piastri fell 0.100s shy in second ahead of Verstappen – whose medium-tyre time was enough for third fastest.
Hadjar, George Russell, Alex Albon and Yuki Tsunoda also set their fastest FP3 times on the medium tyre after struggling to unlock pace on the soft tyre.
| Position | Driver | Team | Time |
| 1 | Lando Norris | McLaren | 1m 14.897 |
| 2 | Oscar Piastri | McLaren | + 0.100 |
| 3 | Max Verstappen | Red Bull | + 0.181 |
| 4 | Andrea Kimi Antonelli | Mercedes | + 0.502 |
| 5 | Charles Leclerc | Ferrari | + 0.554 |
| 6 | Carlos Sainz | Williams | + 0.560 |
| 7 | Isack Hadjar | Racing Bulls | + 0.611 |
| 8 | George Russell | Mercedes | + 0.765 |
| 9 | Alex Albon | Williams | + 0.835 |
| 10 | Lewis Hamilton | Ferrari | + 0.890 |
| 11 | Fernando Alonso | Aston Martin | + 0.922 |
| 12 | Oliver Bearman | Haas | + 1.047 |
| 13 | Lance Stroll | Aston Martin | + 1.078 |
| 14 | Liam Lawson | Racing Bulls | + 1.080 |
| 15 | Pierre Gasly | Alpine | + 1.093 |
| 16 | Gabriel Bortoleto | Sauber | + 1.149 |
| 17 | Yuki Tsunoda | Red Bull | + 1.213 |
| 18 | Franco Colapinto | Alpine | + 1.313 |
| 19 | Nico Hulkenberg | Sauber | + 1.341 |
| 20 | Esteban Ocon | Haas | + 1.490 |
Qualifying
Q1
Sauber’s Hulkenberg and Bortoleto were first on track with the former setting 1m 17.022 as the initial benchmark time but Bortoleto went 0.324s quicker than his teammate.
Alonso then lowered the benchmark tom 1m 16.238 until Albon found 0.074s to go top with 1m 16.164, just before the red flags came out in the sixth minute after Tsunoda clipped the inside kerb at Variante Villeneuve which sent him barell-rolling into the barriers.
Luckily, the Japanese driver walked away unharmed and led to a 15-minute stoppage with 12 minutes and 13s left on the clock, before the session eventually resumed.
Sainz was first to break the 76-second barrier with 1m 15.987 once everyone got back out followed by Gasly then Alonso, before Verstappen posted 1m 15.175 to put himself top of the timesheet.
Hulkenberg, Bortoleto, Bearman and Ocon meanwhile found themselves in the danger zone once everyone set at least one lap time, except for Tsunoda who took no further part in Q1 following his accident.
At the checkered flag, Bortoleto escaped elimination by just 0.039s ahead of Lawson who was knocked out in 16th ahead of Hulkenberg.
Ocon improved on his final lap to qualify 18th ahead of Bearman who briefly went 10th-fastest until stewards deleted his lap time which had been set just mere seconds after the red flag came back out, due to a heavy crash for Colapinto at Tamburello.
Haas subsequently queried the timing of the red flag and Bearman’s final lap time which led Q2 to be delayed, whilst Sauber sent Bortoleto to the pit exit to create further confusion.
Q2
Bortoleto was first out on track and Haas were forced to accept the failure of their query as Bearman climbed out of his car, whilst Bortoleto set 1m 16.683 as the benchmark time.
Verstappen quickly displaced him with 1m 15.400 barely a minute later but Norris went 0.139s quicker, only for Piastri in the sixth minute to post 1m 15.241 to go top from his teammate by 0.020s
Stroll, Gasly, Albon and Bortoleto found themselves in the elimination zone once everyone set a lap time, except Colapinto who played no part in the segment.
As everyone ventured out for the second runs led by Bortoleto with four minutes left, Alonso and Stroll switched to the medium tyre in a bold gamble for Aston Martin.
Once the checkered flag fell, that gamble paid off as both Alonso and Stroll qualified for Q3 alongside Gasly and Albon, which meant that Bortoleto was the sole at-risk driver to not make Q3 as he qualified 14th behind home hero – Antonelli in 13th position.
Ferrari suffered a shock double elimination as Leclerc and Hamilton qualified 11th and 12th respectively after the pair failed to improve sufficiently on their final laps.
Sainz meanwhile unexpectedly topped Q2 with 1m 15.198 ahead of Piastri by 0.016s.
Q3
Stroll and Alonso were first out on track for the first Q3 runs and the Canadian set 1m 15.767 as the initial benchmark time, which was quickly beaten by Hadjar.
McLaren were in a class of their own up front as Norris set 1m 14.962 to go top, only for Piastri to better his lap by 0.141s with 1m 14.821, yet Verstappen in the sole remaining Red Bull somehow pulled off 1m 14.772 to go onto provisional pole by 0.049s from Piastri.
Behind the top three, Russell found himself fourth after the opening Q3 fliers ahead of; Hadjar, Stroll, Alonso, Sainz, Albon and Gasly.
At the checkered flag, Piastri snatched pole with 1m 14.670 ahead of Verstappen who fell 0.037s shy in second.
Russell followed Aston Martin’s lead and gambled on the medium tyre for his final lap which saw him qualify third ahead of Norris, after the latter failed to improve on his final lap which left him fourth ahead of; Alonso, Sainz, Albon, Stroll, Hadjar and Gasly.
| Position | Driver | Team | Time |
| 1 | Oscar Piastri | McLaren | 1m 14.670 |
| 2 | Max Verstappen | Red Bull | + 0.034 |
| 3 | George Russell | Mercedes | + 0.137 |
| 4 | Lando Norris | McLaren | + 0.292 |
| 5 | Fernando Alonso | Aston Martin | + 0.761 |
| 6 | Carlos Sainz | Williams | + 0.762 |
| 7 | Alex Albon | Williams | + 0.803 |
| 8 | Lance Stroll | Aston Martin | + 0.911 |
| 9 | Isack Hadjar | Racing Bulls | + 1.076 |
| 10 | Pierre Gasly | Alpine | + 1.117 |
| 11 | Charles Leclerc | Ferrari | 1m 15.604 |
| 12 | Lewis Hamilton | Ferrari | + 0.161 |
| 13 | Andrea Kimi Antonelli | Mercedes | + 0.168 |
| 14 | Gabriel Bortoleto | Sauber | + 0.656 |
| 15 | Franco Colapinto | Alpine | No Time |
| 16 | Liam Lawson | Racing Bulls | 1m 16.379 |
| 17 | Nico Hulkenberg | Sauber | + 0.139 |
| 18 | Esteban Ocon | Haas | + 0.234 |
| 19 | Oliver Bearman | Haas | + 0.539 |
| DNQ | Yuki Tsunoda | Red Bull | No Time |
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