Kimi Antonelli Secures Pole Position at US Grand Prix with World Title Within Reach
Mercedes driver Kimi Antonelli claims pole at the US Grand Prix in Austin. Discover how the championship leader can clinch the F1 world title this Sunday.
POLICY WIRE — Austin, United States — Mercedes driver Kimi Antonelli has secured pole position for the upcoming US Grand Prix, placing him in a prime position to potentially become the youngest world champion in Formula One history. The 20-year-old Italian delivered a stellar performance during Saturday’s qualifying session at the Circuit of the Americas, clocking an unbeatable time of 1m 34.035s.
Red Bull’s Max Verstappen will join Antonelli on the front row, while his teammate Isack Hadjar qualified third. Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc rounded out the second row, with seven-time champion Lewis Hamilton set to start fifth after leading the final practice session.
Antonelli currently holds a 102-point lead over his closest rival and teammate, George Russell, who managed only the sixth-fastest time. With 125 points remaining in the season, the Italian can clinch the title on Sunday if he wins the race and his rivals finish outside the top positions; specifically, Russell must finish no higher than ninth, and Hamilton no higher than fifth.
Reflecting on his first pole since Belgium in July, Antonelli expressed his relief over the team radio, stating, It feels good to be back. Addressing the crowd after exiting his car, he acknowledged the difficulty of the upcoming race, noting, We got pole, so we will try to win tomorrow. Max has been very quick and Isack did an incredible job, so it will not be easy. We will try to get a good start and hopefully we lead into Turn One, then set the pace, even though it will be very tight.
Reporting by Policy-Wire (PW)
