The Dutch Grand Prix was a fascinating return to action after the summer break, even if McLaren’s dominance has continued at the front of the grid.
Oscar Piastri stole pole position from Lando Norris in qualifying despite his teammate leading every session up to that point.
Max Verstappen put his Red Bull on the second row of the grid, and he’ll be joined by Isack Hadjar, who claimed his best grid position of his Formula 1 career.
There were also plenty of drivers who needed a strong result that didn’t deliver.
RANKDRIVERTEAMTIME1Oscar PiastriMcLaren1:08.6622Lando NorrisMcLaren1:08.6743Max VerstappenRed Bull1:08.9254Isack HadjarRacing Bulls1:09.2085George RussellMercedes1:09.2556Charles LeclercFerrari1:09.3407Lewis HamiltonFerrari1:09.3908Liam LawsonRacing Bulls1:09.5009Carlos SainzWilliams1:09.50510Fernando AlonsoAston Martin1:09.6302025 Dutch Grand Prix qualifying
Lance Stroll put his Aston Martin in the barriers for the second time this weekend, and Stroll was very short with the media after yet another Q1 elimination.
Andrea Kimi Antonelli failed to progress to the top 10 shootout, while under pressure Alpine driver Franco Colapinto was beaten by Pierre Gasly once again.
Another driver who will be frustrated with how qualifying played out at the Dutch Grand Prix was Yuki Tsunoda.
Tsunoda once again failed to progress to Q3 after setting an identical time to Sauber’s Gabriel Bortoleto, and Ralf Schumacher has made an ominous prediction about his future.
READ MORE: Red Bull driver Yuki Tsunoda’s life outside F1 from height to parents
Photo by Kym Illman/Getty ImagesRalf Schumacher thinks Red Bull driver Yuki Tsunoda is on a ‘farewell tour’ after Dutch Grand Prix qualifying
Schumacher was covering the race in Zandvoort for Sky Sports DE, and when speaking about the Japanese driver, he simply said: “This looks like a farewell tour to me.
“I wouldn’t know what to recommend as a manager [to Isack Hadjar].
“It’s quite a feat to drive alongside Max Verstappen. And Racing Bulls could also use a driver of Hadjar’s calibre as a leader.”
Isack Hadjar is the frontrunner to replace Tsunoda, and his career-best qualifying performance may have only strengthened his chances of a promotion.
The French rookie explained: “Every young driver from the Red Bull Academy has the same goal: First, get into Formula 1, then gain a foothold in the A-Team.
“I’m no exception. I’m not here just to race along—I want to achieve the maximum.
“The title is my biggest dream—and of course, it’s much more realistic with a top team.”
Red Bull chief Helmut Marko spoke to Sky Sports DE after the session as well, and he admitted: “Hadjar had problems with the power unit twice yesterday
“But he just handled it, and when it counted, he delivered very well.
“We’ve extended the option for now and want to continue monitoring before we make a decision in September or October.”
READ MORE: Red Bull have now made a ‘painful realisation’ about Yuki Tsunoda
Photo by Jakub Porzycki/NurPhoto via Getty ImagesYuki Tsunoda makes ‘did my best’ claim after missing out on Q3 at the Dutch Grand Prix
The £1.5m-a-year driver is trying to convince Red Bull to renew his contract, but with Hadjar and Liam Lawson outqualifying him, it’s not the best start to racing again after the summer break.
Speaking in his post-race media session, Tsunoda explained: “I believed that I did my best today, to be honest. I was happy with the lap; it felt clean, and there weren’t any mistakes from my end, so it was strange that we didn’t extract the peak performance to get into Q3.
“The car was good and the pace was there, [but] the result didn’t match the way I felt during the session.
“I’m disappointed and frustrated with the result today, but I shall keep digging to find performance tomorrow.
Friday 29th August to Sunday 31st August
Friday 29th August 10:30 1st Practice Friday 29th August 14:00 2nd Practice Saturday 30th August 09:30 3rd Practice Saturday 30th August 13:00 1st Qualifying Saturday 30th August 13:22 2nd Qualifying Saturday 30th August 13:42 3rd Qualifying Sunday 31st August 13:00 Race
“I qualified close to the points, so there is potential to score, and that’s what we’ll aim to do as I felt confident in the car, so we’ll see what tomorrow brings, where anything can happen.”
Tsunoda hasn’t scored points since the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix, and breaking that duck at Zandvoort feels like a requirement given where Hadjar is starting the race from.
The Racing Bulls look like the superior car to the Red Bull in the hands of any driver that isn’t Verstappen, and whether that’s taken into account by Laurent Mekies and Marko is another matter.