Miami – Sprint Qualifying: Kimi Antonelli in pole position!

Under the setting sun of Miami, mistakes were forbidden and in this game Kimi Antonelli secured his very first pole position in Formula 1 by getting ahead of McLaren byOscar piastri and Lando Norris ! The pilots Mercedes made a strong impression during the sprint qualifying session, confirming their comfort level since the start of the season. George Russell and especially Kimi Antonelli shone with their pace from the first segments, but the Italian seemed more at ease than his teammate who did not appreciate the medium tires, mandatory in SQ1 and SQ2.

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In his last attempt, the Bologna native managed the feat of depriving the McLarens of pole position, as had been done Lewis Hamilton in China. Oscar Piastri will accompany him on the front line while Lando Norris and Max Verstappen will occupy the second row. George Russell is only 5th, just over three tenths behind his teammate: a small slap in the face for the Briton, who has been sparkling since the start of the season. While it is not strictly speaking a pole position, Antonelli remains the youngest driver in history to set the fastest time in a qualifying session. At 18, he is better than Sebastian Vettel, who was 21 when he took his first pole at the 2008 Italian GP.

At Alpine, the atmosphere is less cheerful than at Mercedes. If Pierre Gasly managed to qualify for SQ2 (13th), his teammate Jack Doohan was furious at the time of his elimination in SQ1. The Australian let out a rant on the radio against his team, whom he accused of having completely missed their strategy which caused his elimination. Alpine is not the only team to have gotten its feet tangled up, since Red Bull threw Yuki tsunoda a little late for his last attempt: the Japanese took the checkered flag just before setting off after being hindered by his teammate Max Verstappen in the last corner...

Hadjar shines, Tsunoda and Lawson take on water

In the Red Bull fold, Liam Lawson's performance wasn't much better than that of the man who took his place. The New Zealander could only manage 14th place, 0 seconds behind his teammate Isack Hadjar, who reached SQ6 with a 3th place, 10 seconds behind Lando Norris, the fastest.It was so bad.” Liam Lawson railed on the radio, a collateral victim of an ultra-close session. Hadjar, for his part, took the 9th fastest time.

Fernando Alonso also managed to participate in SQ3, reaching the top 10 in qualifying for the first time this season. Finally finishing 10th, he was the only Spaniard in the top 10 after the error of Carlos Sainz in SQ2. The Madrilenian, who will have a Grand Prix in his hometown next year, made a mistake on his only attempt and was unable to set a single time. “Sorry guys, it’s my fault.” he apologized on the radio. His performance is all the more disappointing given that the Williams have a lot of pace this weekend as Alex showed Albon, author of a solid 8th time behind the Ferrari.

F1 – Miami Grand Prix 

The sprint qualifying rankings

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