Antonelli confirms a high-flying weekend in Miami

The pole position secured in the sprint qualifying session by young prodigy Andrea Kimi Antonelli was neither a one-off nor a stroke of luck. In the qualifying session for the main race in Miami, the Italian was unable to repeat the miracle, but he still managed to squeeze in his Mercedes between the two McLaren, taking third position.

« This weekend is going well so far, recognizes the 18-year-old pilot. I was a little disappointed with the Sprint but it's good to bounce back like this. » Indeed, first on the Sprint grid, the Mercedes driver only crossed the finish line in tenth position, before being promoted to seventh thanks to the numerous penalties imposed on his competitors. The cause: a missed first corner on a wet track. The mishap did not spare him.

Antonelli just 67 thousandths of a second from pole

Despite this opportunity gone, the replacement of Lewis Hamilton doesn't seem like the type to dwell on past events. Back in the driver's seat for qualifying for the main race, the young prodigy once again proved the extent of his talent. I struggled a bit in qualifying; it wasn't as clean as yesterday. The last lap was pretty good, even though I was a bit greedy in the first corner. The rest of the lap made up for that. The gaps are very tight, and if you can gain a few hundredths, you can make up several positions. You really have to put everything together, and I'm doing that so far this weekend, and I hope we have a good race on Sunday. »

With a time of 1'26''271, Andrea Kimi Antonelli missed pole position by just 67 thousandths, a feat achieved once again by Max Verstappen, and is only two thousandths behind the McLaren of Lando Norris. If he has not yet managed to climb onto a podium in Formula 1, the Italian is getting closer. Florida may prove to be the birthplace of a future prolific record. See you on Sunday at 22:00 p.m. (French time) for the Grand Prix of Miami.

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