Kimi Antonelli storms to Japanese GP pole as Max Verstappen exits in Q2 shock

Kimi Antonelli will line up on pole position at the Japanese Grand Prix, making it two from two in Formula 1’s early-season Asian swing.

Although Mercedes didn’t have it all their own way in the first two segments, the W17 was the superior car in the pole-position shoot-out where Antonelli set the pace ahead of George Russell. Oscar Piastri was Mercedes’ closest rival, four-tenths off the pace.

Oliver Bearman shocks with early Q1 exit

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The Racing Bulls teammates were the first out in Q1, with Liam Lawson opening the timesheet with a 1:31.785. Charles Leclerc took over at the front ahead of Oscar Piastri and Lewis Hamilton.

But everything changed when Mercedes left the pits. Kimi Antonelli went quickest with a 1:30.035, putting him 0.040s ahead of Leclerc. George Russell, surprisingly, was six-tenths down. “Something doesn’t feel quite right, I have a load of oversteer,” reported the championship leader.

Ferrari ventured out for a second run, with Leclerc putting in two purple sectors on his way to a 1:29.915. Russell went second, ahead of Antonelli, with the leading trio separated by 0.120s.

Alex Albon, Oliver Bearman, Sergio Perez, Valtteri Bottas, Fernando Alonso, and Lance Stroll were the six drivers eliminated.

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Adopting a different run plan to Q1, Antonelli and Russell were the first two drivers out in the second segment, both on used tyres. F1’s newest race winner posted a 1:29.774, four-tenths ahead of Russell.

Ferrari was the next team to cross the line, Leclerc just 0.011s slower than Antonelli as he split the Mercedes teammates. Hamilton was fourth. They too ran on used tyres.

Oscar Piastri, out on new tyres, went quickest with a 1:29.451.

Swapping to new soft Pirelli tyres, Leclerc went fastest with a 1:29.303 while Russell could only manage third place, three-tenths behind Piastri. He urged Mercedes to examine his data as he was “missing” something. Antonelli put in a late lap to set the Q2 pace with a 1:29.048.

Max Verstappen was the big-name exit as the Dutchman could only improve to P9, and watched as Isack Hadjar and then Arvid Lindblad knocked him out of qualifying in 11th place. Verstappen reported there is “something wrong” with his “undriveable” RB22.

He was joined by Esteban Ocon, Nico Hulkenberg, Liam Lawson and Franco Colapinto.

Kimi Antonelli put his Mercedes W17 on pole position

The remaining 10 drivers headed out as the session began, with Antonelli and Russell trading purple sector times. Antonelli came out on top with a 1:28.778, three-tenths ahead of his teammate. Lindblad’s opening gambit was deleted for track limits.

Ferrari entered the fight for pole, purple in their first sectors, but both Leclerc and Hamilton lost time as the lap progressed and slotted in P5 and 6 with Leclerc ahead. They were not only slower than the Mercedes drivers but also the McLaren pairing.

Antonelli came out firing in his second run, but a lock-up at Turn 11 meant he wasn’t able to improve on his previous best. Neither could Russell.

Leclerc, though, was on a flier with a purple time in the first sector but a big snap of oversteer meant P4 was the best he could manage. He qualified ahead of Norris and Hamilton with the latter noted for driving “unnecessarily slow’ in the pit exit.

Japanese GP Qualifying Result

1 Kimi Antonelli Mercedes 1:28.778
2 George Russell Mercedes 1:29.076
3 Oscar Piastri McLaren 1:29.132
4 Charles Leclerc Ferrari 1:29.405
5 Lando Norris McLaren 1:29.409
6 Lewis Hamilton Ferrari 1:29.567
7 Pierre Gasly Alpine 1:29.691
8 Isack Hadjar Red Bull 1:29.978
9 Gabriel Bortoleto Audi 1:30.274
10 Arvid Lindblad Racing Bulls 1:30.319
11 Max Verstappen Red Bull 1:30.262
12 Esteban Ocon Haas 1:30.309
13 Nico Hulkenberg Audi 1:30.387
14 Liam Lawson Racing Bulls 1:30.495
15 Franco Colapinto Alpine 1:30.627
16 Carlos Sainz Williams 1:31.033
17 Alex Albon Williams 1:31.088
18 Oliver Bearman Haas 1:31.090
19 Sergio Perez Cadillac 1:32.206
20 Valtteri Bottas Cadillac 1:32.330
21 Fernando Alonso Aston Martin 1:32.646
22 Lance Stroll Aston Martin 1:32.920

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