Watch: Lando Norris' mother heaves a sigh of relief as the driver escapes elimination in the F1 Belgian GP SQ2

F1 Grand Prix of Abu Dhabi - Qualifying - Source: Getty
Lando Norris with his mother Cisca at F1 Grand Prix of Abu Dhabi - Qualifying - Source: Getty

Lando Norris came into the 2025 Belgian GP as the race winner of the previous two F1 races at the Red Bull Ring and Silverstone. The Briton's mother, Cisca, was at the Spa Francorchamps circuit as his son took to the Sprint qualifying session on Friday, July 25. As Norris narrowly escaped the SQ2 elimination, Cisca heaved a huge sigh of relief, as shown on the F1TV broadcast.

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Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri were the two favorites coming into the Belgian GP for the pole position and the race, given the dominant form that McLaren has been this season. However, both drivers came close to getting eliminated in the SQ2 session during the Sprint qualifying.

The teams and drivers only had one practice session for the sprint qualifying, and as the runner was laid down by the cars over the duration of the sessions, the track evolved rapidly. Despite a decent first run in SQ2, Norris found himself in P11 before his final lap.

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If the Briton were to make any mistakes on the final lap, he would've been eliminated in SQ2. However, Lando Norris successfully completed the lap and went to the top of the timing sheets, pushing Oscar Piastri to the brink of elimination.

Lando Norris' mother, Cisca, who was present in the McLaren garage, reacted to her son escaping the elimination. She heaved a huge sigh of relief as the #4 McLaren made it into the SQ3 session, followed by a round of applause for her son.

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Oscar Piastri’s final lap time in SQ2 was deleted for track limits, but the Australian was able to make it into SQ3 on his banker lap.

Oscar Piastri takes Belgian GP Sprint pole position, Lando Norris qualifies P3

Spa Francorchamps has always been a happy hunting ground for Oscar Piastri, having finished as a runner-up in 2024. Coming into the 2025 Belgian GP, the Australian has been under pressure from Norris, who's cut his championship lead to just 8 points. Nonetheless, the 24-year-old driver put in a dominant display in the Sprint qualifying and will start Sunday's Sprint race in pole position.

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F1 Grand Prix of Belgium - Practice & Sprint Qualifying - Source: Getty
F1 Grand Prix of Belgium - Practice & Sprint Qualifying - Source: Getty

After narrowly making it to SQ3, Oscar Piastri set the timing sheets on fire in his sole run during the session, and set a lap time of 1:40.510, nearly half a second faster than second-fastest Max Verstappen's lap time.

Lando Norris was half a second slower than Piastri during the practice session, and the same trend continued into the Sprint qualifying, as the latter was over six tenths faster than his teammate in SQ3. The British driver will start the race in P3, ahead of Ferrari's Charles Leclerc.

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Edited by Sumeet Kavthale
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