Kimi Antonelli took his second pole position in a row as he beat Mercedes team-mate George Russell in qualifying at the Japanese Grand Prix.
Antonelli was fastest throughout qualifying and beat Russell by 0.298 seconds despite not improving on his final run at Suzuka.
Russell also did not improve but still had enough to beat McLaren’s Oscar Piastri, who will be joined on the second row by Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc.
McLaren’s Lando Norris was fifth after a troubled weekend so far, ahead of Lewis Hamilton’s Ferrari, while Max Verstappen was knocked out in the second session and will start 11th.
Antonelli’s first lap in the final session was 0.298secs quicker than Russell’s. He was on course to improve on his final run but locked up into the hairpin and lost time.
The 19-year-old Italian said: “Super happy with the session. It was a good one, a clean one. And I felt very good in the car and every run I was just improving and improving.
“Shame about the last lap after a lock-up in Turn 11 but it was a good one before that.”
Antonelli became the youngest driver to take pole position in history in China and is emerging as a serious threat to Russell in the championship – they start the race separated by four points, less than the margin between first and second places in a grand prix.
Russell, who was complaining of a lack of rear grip throughout qualifying, was quicker than Antonelli in the difficult first sector of the lap but lost out over the rest.
“Really strange session,” the Briton said. “We were both very fast all weekend. We made some adjustments after final practice and in this qualifying we were nowhere so we have to try and understand.”
Piastri, meanwhile, was pleased with the obvious progress McLaren have made this weekend, during which they have for the first time been in the mix with Ferrari as the closest challengers to Mercedes.
“We have looked good all weekend,” said the Australian, who is yet to start a grand prix this season after a crash on the reconnaissance lap in Australia and a battery failure in China before the start.
“We don’t have the pace to match Mercedes still but we are getting closer.”
More to follow
- How to follow Japanese Grand Prix on the BBC
- Has Aston Martin’s Newey team principal project failed? F1 Q&A
- Andrew Benson Q&A: Send us your questions
- Japanese GP Preview: Will Mercedes’ Dominance Continue?
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