Kimi Antonelli of Mercedes earned a second consecutive pole position and 50th for an Italian driver after winning qualifying for the Japanese Grand Prix, the third round of the Formula 1 season, BTA reports. The 19-year-old driver, who triumphed in the previous race in China, achieved a best time of 1:28.778 minutes, ahead of his teammate George Russell, who will start from second position. Russell was 0.298 seconds slower than the young Italian at the “Suzuka“ track.
Kimi Antonelli recorded a weak final qualifying lap, leaving a chance for success for George Russell, but the British driver also had a chaotic lap and finished second.
Mercedes secured a front row start for the third time in the first three races of the 2026 season.
On the second row of the grid will be McLaren's Oscar Piastre (+0.354) and Ferrari's Charles Leclerc, 0.627 behind. Leclerc set the fastest first session and looked likely to beat Antonelli's time, but a weak second half of qualifying saw him finish fourth.
Defending champion Lando Norris of McLaren will start fifth, having been 0.631 seconds slower than the winner. Ferrari's fellow driver Lewis Hamilton finished sixth in qualifying, followed by Pierre Gasly (Alpine), Isaac Khdjar (Red Bell), Gabriel Bortoletto (Audi) and Arvid Lindblad (Racing Bulls).
Red Bull's Max Verstappen, a four-time Formula 1 champion, finished 11th at Suzuka after retiring in the second session. The Japanese Grand Prix is on Sunday.