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Lando Norris took his first pole position of the year in Hungary but is cautious about whether he can follow it up with his first victory as world champion.

Perhaps the McLaren driver was casting his mind back to Miami in early May, when he was leading towards the end of the first stint of the race, only for his team to make a strategic mis-step and allow Mercedes driver Kimi Antonelli to sneak in for a win.

"You can't just rely on one good qualifying, so I need a good race tomorrow," Norris said.

"Then we obviously have a nice summer break, but after that we need to try and repeat it several more times.

"We've been working hard. We know we've been on the back foot, but we're making progress and today certainly shows that."

Much of the attention at the Hungarian Grand Prix has been on the massive upgrade made by Aston Martin on their recalcitrant car, which has provided the troubled team with a major step forward and allowed Fernando Alonso to escape the first qualifying session for the first time all season.

That meant McLaren's own upgrade went under the radar somewhat, but it has been effective.

Still, team principal Andrea Stella, while expressing his satisfaction that the upgrades had enabled them to engage in a fight for pole they did not expect, said Norris' pole was an "overachievement".

McLaren's own good execution of qualifying was one factor, he said, in addition to an under-performance from Ferrari, and perhaps even Antonelli and Mercedes.

Ferrari came into Hungary as most people's favourite, including McLaren's, on the basis that their car is the fastest in the corners, but lacks engine performance, and this is one of the least power-sensitive tracks on the calendar.

Lewis Hamilton was fastest after the first runs in the final part of qualifying but did not improve on his final lap. Shortly after completing it, he blocked Norris' team-mate Oscar Piastri and the stewards imposed a three-place grid penalty for impeding the Australian.

Ferrari boss Frederic Vasseur said the team took responsibility for that because they did not warn Hamilton in time.

The seven-time world champion later posted on Instagram:, external "Sometimes you just can't catch a break. Another weekend when I've been feeling great throughout all the sessions, but then it just falls apart."

Referencing penalties he had been given in the previous two races in Britain and Belgium, Hamilton added: "I always do my best to keep positive - sport is always about the highs and lows, but it's also in the margins. Every point counts and you have to seize every opportunity. After three penalties in three weekends, it's becoming difficult to hang on to that positivity.

"Still, I won't let the setbacks take away from the progress we've been making as a team. With the pace we have, I'm hopeful we can get something out of the race tomorrow."

For all that Ferrari have been quick, Norris and McLaren have also looked in good shape all weekend. And, at least on this circuit, they have vaulted right to the front, into a position that had been familiar for the past two seasons, but not so in 2026.

While sat with Ferrari's Hamilton and Charles Leclerc, Norris said: "I knew the pace was certainly there. It has been all weekend. Even though these guys have been insanely fast, I knew I'd been driving very well, I'd been consistent, and I knew the car had potential.

"We also had the upgrades this weekend, and it doesn't feel that different, but it certainly seems to be going a little bit quicker, and that's always a good thing."â¨

Overtaking is expected to be especially difficult around the Hungaroring this year.

In Miami, an excess of caution on McLaren's part about the potential of rain allowed Mercedes to pit Antonelli before Norris and leap into the lead.

Norris' pole provides an opportunity to make amends for that - if he can keep Leclerc behind on the run to the first corner.

After winning two consecutive constructors' titles in 2024 and 2025, as well as Norris' drivers' championship last year, McLaren have not had a great season at the start of this new regulation cycle.

Securing the title against a late-season onslaught from Max Verstappen and Red Bull put them behind on designing this year's car, and they took some mis-steps on aerodynamic philosophy that only became fully understood after the first handful of races.

An upgrade package introduced by McLaren this weekend, their first since Miami, is the fruit of work aimed at correcting course, and the first signs are positive.

They have also struggled to get on top of the operation of the new Mercedes engine, feeling for the first time that they were suffering for not being a works partner of a manufacturer.

"It's just nice to be on pole," said Norris, who had also shown competitive pace in Belgium last weekend but was prevented from a good result by a 10-place grid penalty for exceeding the permitted number of engine parts, and then by bad luck with the timing of a safety car.

"I have felt good all weekend. The last few weekends, honestly, I felt pretty good and it's been nice I continued my good feelings in the car.

"I had my money on Ferrari before the weekend and they have been insanely quick but come qualifying we just seemed to take more of a step forward, I knew it was possible and that has been a good feeling and one that I have missed for quite a while."

As for his prospects in the race, Norris alluded to strong performances from the Mercedes and Ferrari drivers on the race-simulation runs in Friday practice when he said: "The race pace on others looked very strong. It is always a bit tricky to know how things will go with a new car and new bits."

Leclerc, though, felt Norris would certainly be in the fight, and both have some protection from Hamilton and Antonelli, both demoted by three-place penalties to fifth and seventh places respectively.

"Lando seems to be very, very strong, so I'll say Lando (is the favourite)," Leclerc said. "But if you look over the course of the season, Mercedes has always been up there, so I do not doubt that they'll all be in the fight as well."

Aston Martin and Alonso take major step

Down at Aston Martin, meanwhile, there was at last some reason to feel positive after a dark time so far this season.

So much had been expected of the team when design legend Adrian Newey joined them in March last year, but a late start to their design process combined with engine partner Honda falling well short of performance and - like McLaren - also some errors in philosophy, have left them cemented at the back all year.

In absolute terms, progressing beyond the first session for the first time all season, and lining up 16th, is nothing special. But to be actually able to compete with other teams again, for pretty much the first time all year, was a major step.

In percentage terms, this was not quite Aston Martin's best performance of the season - they were 0.012% closer to pole in Japan. But it is huge compared with where they have fallen since as others have developed their cars.

There is a Honda engine upgrade to come for the next race after the summer break - of undefined size. More importantly, this has revitalised faith in Aston Martin's development capabilities after three years of upgrades that failed to deliver what the team expected.

"I think there is more potential to unlock in the car, but it's normal when you have such a big package," Alonso said.

"It was important for everyone in the team as it has been a tough period in both factories.

"Having the deficit that we had in terms of performance in the first half of the year and this package, obviously, it didn't change many positions, but it changed a lot I think the momentum of everyone in the factory.

"It's not any more that we are chasing something that we don't know. We know exactly what we are looking for and we know exactly the targets for the next package or the targets for next year. So, that's I think for me the biggest change of this weekend."

Whether it is enough for Alonso to decide to commit to another season behind the wheel remains to be seen.

He turns 45 next week. He has said he still feels competitive - and continues to prove it. But he is no fan of the energy management required from this year's engines.

He continues to profess his confidence that Newey and Honda will eventually produce the best car and engine. But, as he keeps repeating, the question is how long that will take, and whether it fits his timeline.

As he said upon arriving in Hungary on Thursday: "It's not a problem with the competitiveness of the team. It's just a problem of whether Formula 1 gives me the adrenaline that I need to live."

Alonso has a lot of thinking to do as he heads off on his summer break, his first as a father, next week.