Formula 1: Lando Norris grabs pole at rain-hit qualifying for Russian Grand Prix

Lando Norris took pole position for the first time in a rain-hit qualifying session for the Russian Grand Prix on Saturday after timing his final fast lap to perfection on a drying track.

The McLaren driver set the pace with a time of 1 minute, 41.993 seconds in the dying seconds of the session after switching to slick tires as the racing line dried. He pushed Carlos Sainz into second place as George Russell took third for Williams.

Lewis Hamilton placed fourth after setting the early pace on intermediate tires, but errors toward the end of the session proved costly. The Mercedes driver bumped the wall while coming into the pits and had to change his front wing, and had a spin late in the session.

Max Verstappen of Red Bull leads the championship standings but will start from the back of the grid in the race Sunday because he changed his engine. Mindful of the slippery conditions, Verstappen didn’t try to set a time in qualifying. Charles Leclerc of Ferrari has a similar penalty, as does Nicholas Latifi of Williams.

Heavy rain through the day and low light raised doubts over whether qualifying could go ahead at all, after the Saturday morning practice session was canceled. While waiting, seven-time champion Hamilton  skipped down the pit lane  under an umbrella in the style of the musical “Singin’ In The Rain."