F1 Miami GP: Kimi Antonelli claims his first sprint pole at just 18 years old

Mercedes Formula 1 rookie Andrea Kimi Antonelli claimed his maiden sprint pole at the Miami Grand Prix, defeating both McLarens.

Antonelli had looked rapid throughout Friday afternoon’s sprint qualifying session and his late run of 1m26.482s was enough to withstand a last-ditch run by McLaren duo Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris, who qualified 0.045s and 0.100s behind respectively.

Reigning world champion Max Verstappen was fourth-fastest, followed by Antonelli’s Mercedes team-mate George Russell and the Ferrari duo of Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton.

Alex Albon was eighth for Williams, while there was a co-starring role for Racing Bulls driver Isack Hadjar in ninth and some encouragement for Aston Martin with Fernando Alonso rounding out the top 10.

Oscar Piastri, McLaren

Photo by: Sam Bloxham / Motorsport Images

In the deciding top 10 shootout Russell and Verstappen were the only drivers to run early, having the track to themselves at the start with Russell leading the Red Bull driver by almost three tenths. The remaining eight drivers joined at the end when the Miami Autodrome was at its quickest, with Verstappen embarking on a second tour. Verstappen did go quicker, but not as fast as Antonelli who pumped his fists as he celebrated his maiden sprint pole at the age of 18.

Traffic chaos proves costly for three drivers

In SQ2 Nico Hulkenberg, Esteban Ocon, Pierre Gasly, Liam Lawson and Carlos Sainz were eliminated, with Norris topping the second qualifying phase ahead of Verstappen, Piastri and Antonelli.

As is often the case for sprint qualifying there was a scramble at end of pitlane for the start of the 12-minute SQ1 session, with 20 cars vying for track position.

Antonelli – again – led the way after the first run, and due to rapid track evolution, all cars embarked on a second tour – although Verstappen didn’t follow through – making it tough to find a pocket of clear air.

Jack Doohan, Yuki Tsunoda, Gabriel Bortoleto, and Oliver Bearman found themselves in the drop zone after run one, as well as Hadjar, who made a mistake on his first attempt.

Hadjar climbed to eighth to secure safe passage to SQ2, but in traffic Doohan, Tsunoda and Bearman all ran out of time for a second attempt much to their frustration. That meant Lawson just about managed to scrape through in 15th despite surviving a wild snap through the chicane.

Andrea Kimi Antonelli, Mercedes

Photo by: Sam Bloxham / Motorsport Images

The Miami Grand Prix sprint takes place on Saturday at noon local time for 19 laps across the Miami Autodrome.

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F1 Miami Grand Prix – Sprint qualifying results

Photos from Miami GP – Practice and Sprint Qualifying