Kimi Antonelli has just made history. By claiming pole position for Saturday’s Miami Sprint Race, the Italian has become the youngest driver ever to take pole in any Formula 1 format at just 18 years and 242 days old. Well clear of the former record holder Sebastian Vettel, who took pole at the 2008 Italian Grand Prix aged 21 years and 72 days.
Having been given just one chance to set a fast lap in SQ3, the Mercedes driver surged past Max Verstappen with a time of 1.26.482. The combined powers of Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri were unable to outdo Antonelli’s efforts, the Australian missing out by a scant 0.045s. After topping the timesheets in SQ1, George Russell was forced to make do with 5th on the grid, that said, the British driver remained magnanimous, congratulating his teammate at the first opportunity and describing his pace as ‘impressive’ in later interviews.
Ferrari’s North American Racing Team-inspired blue livery did little to aid the team’s fortunes with Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton starting 6th and 7th respectively. The seven-time world champion qualified just a tenth clear of Williams’ Alex Albon. Isack Hadjar’s solid FP1 pace proved not to be a red herring as the rookie made it into the final part of sprint qualifying with the 9th fastest time. Nico Hulkenberg looked set for an SQ3 appearance until an iffy final lap saw Fernando Alonso swoop in at the death to claim P10. Behind Hulkenberg came Esteban Ocon, Pierre Gasly (who survived a brush with the wall at turn 16), Liam Lawson, and Carlos Sainz, the Spaniard enduring a troublesome session. By locking up his brakes during his final run in SQ2, Sainz ruled himself out of contention early.
Another big loser in sprint qualifying was Yuki Tsunoda. After asking for a change of helmet due to issues with the wind in SQ1, the Japanese driver’s initial effort of 1.29.246 was only good enough for P18. Following this he failed to make it to the line in time to set another lap. As a result, Red Bull elected to withdraw Tsunoda’s car from parc ferme in order to make any necessary modifications that might optimise his pace in the sprint.
The fitting of the mandatory soft tire for SQ3 meant the lap times were quick to tumble. Verstappen and Russell were the first out with the latter underlining Mercedes’ one-lap pace with a time that put him two-tenths of a second clear of the world champion who, with enough fuel and rubber for two flying laps, stayed out for another attempt. His final time of 1.26.737 was good enough to briefly secure provisional pole, only for Antonelli to shave nearly three-tenths off that time during his only run. With the track improving and the two McLarens the last of the frontrunners to cross the line, it looked as though an all-papaya front row was on the cards. However, Norris could only come within a tenth of Antonelli while Piastri, despite going purple in the middle sector, could only manage a 1.26.527, half a tenth slower than Antonelli.
The Italian later acknowledged the ‘intensity’ of the session but stated “I felt good since the morning, and I felt confident going into qualifying. The last lap was mighty, and I put basically everything together”. Antonelli also said that, despite the result, his attention has turned to the sprint race itself. With rain expected on Saturday, it's likely the 18-lap sprint will pose yet another fresh challenge for Mercedes's new signing.
