Italian Teen Antonelli Claims Second Straight F1 Pole at Suzuka Circuit

Nineteen-year-old Kimi Antonelli secured his second consecutive Formula 1 pole position ahead of Sunday's Japanese Grand Prix. The Mercedes driver, who won his first F1 race last week in China, edged out teammate George Russell for the top starting spot at Suzuka.

Italian racing prodigy Kimi Antonelli has claimed his second straight Formula 1 pole position, setting the fastest qualifying time for Sunday’s Japanese Grand Prix at the Suzuka Circuit in Japan.

The 19-year-old Mercedes driver made history last week by becoming the youngest competitor to ever secure an F1 pole position, then followed that achievement with his first career victory at the Chinese Grand Prix in Shanghai.

Antonelli dominated Saturday’s qualifying session at the 3.6-mile Suzuka track with a blazing lap time of 1 minute, 28.778 seconds, narrowly beating his Mercedes teammate George Russell from Great Britain. McLaren-Mercedes driver Oscar Piastri of Australia rounded out the top three starting positions.

“It was a good session, I’m happy with it,” Antonelli said. “I think I was able to improve lap by lap. That first Q3 lap was good. Second lap was looking strong but then at Turn 11, I locked up and lost quite a bit of time so it was a shame.”

“I was a bit annoyed with that but (I got) pole position. I felt good in the car, felt good with the track, and now focusing on (Sunday’s race).”

Mercedes has now dominated qualifying for three consecutive races, with Russell earning pole at the season opener in Australia. Russell currently tops the championship standings with 51 points after winning in Australia, while Antonelli sits just four points behind in second place with 47 points.

“It’s just trying to keep this momentum and keep on trying to improve and squeeze a bit of performance every time without overdoing it,” Antonelli said. “I think overall I’m getting a good feeling with the car.”