Four corners. That's where qualifying was decided.
Oscar Piastri set the fastest second sector. He set the fastest third sector. He starts second.
Lando Norris took pole by 0.051 seconds.
Key Finding
Piastri was faster through 14 of the 18 corners at the Hungaroring. He starts second.
Where Norris made the difference
PIA vs NOR — sector-by-sector breakdown
Sector 1 is worth 0.112 seconds. Everything else is green for Piastri.
▲ PIA faster▼ NOR faster
S1: -0.112s · S2: +0.022s · S3: +0.039s
Key Finding
Piastri was faster through 14 of the 18 corners at the Hungaroring. He starts second.
The Hungaroring is 18 corners in 4.4 kilometres. Piastri was quicker through 14 of them. He lost pole in the first four.
Sector 1 runs from the start line through Turn 4. It includes two medium-speed direction changes and two heavy braking zones. Norris was a tenth faster. Piastri clawed back 0.022 seconds in Sector 2 and another 0.039 in Sector 3. Not enough.
The speed trace shows where it went wrong
PIA (Lap 8) vs NOR (Lap 8) — fastest laps compared
The orange line pulls ahead early and never gives it back — Piastri is carrying less speed into Turn 1.
PIA (Lap 8)NOR (Lap 8)
Fastest laps: PIA Lap 8, NOR Lap 8.
Key Finding
Piastri was faster through 14 of the 18 corners at the Hungaroring. He starts second.
Three red flags interrupted the session. Kimi Antonelli had two lap times deleted for track limits at Turn 14. Lance Stroll had one deleted at Turn 9. Franco Colapinto lost a time at Turn 9 as well. None of them were fighting for pole.
Piastri and Norris both did their fastest laps on Lap 8. Same tyres. Same fuel load. Same car. The margin was 0.051 seconds.
Key Finding
Piastri was faster through 14 of the 18 corners at the Hungaroring. He starts second.
Qualifying at the Hungaroring is usually decided by one corner. This time it was decided by four.
The Dutch Grand Prix is next. Zandvoort has fewer slow corners and longer straights. If Piastri can match Norris through the opening sequence there, he won't need to make it up later.
Tap to continue
Piastri faster in two sectors but loses Hungary pole to Norris