Berlin, 2 May 2026 (dpa/MIA) - World champion Lando Norris took pole position for the sprint race at the Miami Grand Prix as the Formula One season resumed on Friday after a month-long break.

The McLaren driver clocked the fastest time of 1 minute 27.869 seconds to beat championship leader Kimi Antonelli of Mercedes by 0.222 seconds. Oscar Piastri in the other McLaren was third.

Norris is yet to finish on the podium this season, but Friday's result made him the first driver to beat Mercedes in a competitive session in 2026.

"A perfect result for us. A nice way to reward the team," he said after the sprint qualifying.

"We have a lot of new upgrades on the car. It's nice to feel some grip again and to reward the guys and the girls that have put a lot of work into this.

"I've always loved Miami on and off the track. It's the beginning of the weekend, so still a long way to go but nice to tick things off by doing this."

Charles Leclerc of Ferrari, who topped the sole practice earlier, was fourth followed by the Red Bull of Max Verstappen and George Russell in the second Mercedes.

Seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton was only seventh. Alpine's Franco Colapinto beat Red Bull's Isack Hadjar to eighth, with Pierre Gasly in the other Alpine rounding out the top 10.

Drivers and teams were forced to take an unplanned break following the Japanese GP on March 29 after races in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia were cancelled due to the escalation of the conflict in the Middle East.

During this period, the new set of regulations, which came into force this year, was slightly tweaked amid safety concerns due to dangerous closing speeds.

The sprint race in on Saturday ahead of qualifying for Sunday's showdown.

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