Lando Norris pipped world champion Max Verstappen to claim pole position at the Spanish Formula One Grand Prix for McLaren, just hours after a fire scare for the team.
Norris clocked 1 minute 11.383 seconds on the 4.657-kilometre Circuit de Catalunya for a second career pole, saying it was "pretty much a perfect lap."
Verstappen missed pole for the third straight weekend as he trailed by a mere two-hundredths of a second, with six-time Barcelona race winner Lewis Hamilton of Mercedes third, .318 back.
Norris was among the people who had to be evacuated from McLaren’s hospitality suite after a fire broke out around an hour before third practice, which was topped by Carlos Sainz. The fire was soon extinguished and one team member was taken to hospital as a precaution, and all McLaren personnel and guests were accounted for.
"The other fire was Lando on the race track," team chief executive Zak Brown told Sky TV after qualifying.
Verstappen tops the championship, 56 points ahead of Ferrari's Charles Leclerc, who qualified sixth.
