BUDAPEST, July 25 (Xinhua) -- McLaren's Lando Norris claimed pole position for the Formula One Hungarian Grand Prix on Saturday after edging Ferrari's Lewis Hamilton by 0.012 seconds in qualifying at the Hungaroring.

Norris clocked the fastest lap of one minute 17.207 seconds to secure his first pole position of the 2026 season. Hamilton finished second, while his teammate Charles Leclerc completed the top three.

Mercedes driver Kimi Antonelli finished fourth, ahead of McLaren's Oscar Piastri in fifth and Red Bull's Max Verstappen in sixth.

However, Hamilton and Antonelli were both handed three-place grid penalties, with Hamilton penalized for impeding Piastri, and Antonelli for failing to slow down enough under a yellow flag.

The penalties mean that Hamilton will start at fifth and Antonelli at seventh on the grid in Sunday's race.

Hamilton had led after the first runs in the final phase of qualifying before Norris produced the fastest lap of the session to take pole.

"Very, very happy to be back on top," Norris said after qualifying. "Ferrari has been very quick all weekend. Qualifying was extremely close. We brought some upgrades this weekend and they definitely helped today."

Hamilton said he had felt comfortable throughout qualifying, but admitted Ferrari had gone out early for the final runs and was unable to fully capitalize on the improving track conditions.

"We were quick throughout qualifying, but in the end we just missed out on pole," he said. ■