Lando Norris Broke ‘Gentleman’s Agreement’ With George Russell Before the Latter Got Knocked Out in Q1

Lewis Hamilton and his side of the Mercedes garage were ecstatic after getting pole position ahead of the Hungarian GP. George Russell, however, had a completely different experience, after getting knocked out of Q1. However, a part of the blame can land on the shoulders of Lando Norris. This is because of the ‘Gentleman’s Agreement’ that the McLaren driver broke.

Russell managed a lap time of 1:19.027 in Q1 and it was simply not enough to go into the top 15. He was 0.121 seconds slower than Daniel Ricciardo, the driver who made his comeback to F1 earlier this weekend with AlphaTauri.

Following the conclusion of the qualification, George Russell said he was “really disappointed” with his performance. During the interview, he also added that despite how strong they were at the Hungaroring, his positioning out on track ended up costing him. Nevertheless, little was known that it was Norris who pulled out a move that seemingly spoiled Russell’s entire weekend.

Brundle pointed out the Gentleman’s Agreement that was broken by Lando Norris

Alex Brundle, a renowned Le Mans racer pointed Norris’ shocking move on George Russell at the end of the session. The F1 expert, speaking on it shared as per F1 TV: “The first car through on the left-hand side, Lando Norris, and they have this Gentleman’s Agreement.”

“[It is a rule that says] The drivers are not allowed to do this [the move Norris pulled out],” Brundle further asserted. Following this, he added that it was incredibly hard for the Mercedes star to build tire temperature that too in a hard tire so quickly.

With Russell not making it to Q2, Mercedes had to endure a very bittersweet afternoon in Budapest. Hamilton earned his first pole position since the 2021 Saudi Arabian GP, and will start ahead of Verstappen and Norris on Sunday.

Hungaroring delivers a gripping qualifying session

Apar from the Red Bull duo of Verstappen and Perez, only two drivers have managed to get pole position this season. Earlier, it was just Charles Leclerc in Baku earlier this campaign. Now, Hamilton joins him on the list. However, this pole does not guarantee him a win in any way.

Hamilton snatched the pole from Verstappen, finishing 0.0003 seconds ahead of him. Norris, meanwhile was 0.0082 seconds slower than the Dutch driver. This means that the top three drivers were separated by less than one tenths of a second.

With Hamilton helping Mercedes to their first pole position of the year, experts believe that Norris too has a chance at winning his first ever Grand Prix this weekend. However, a more likely outcome could be a repeat of the 2023 British GP podium.

As things stand, the two-time world champion seems to be in difficulty for the first time this season. If Red Bull don’t bring their best game on Sunday, their winning streak could be in danger of getting snapped.