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Kimi Antonelli Takes U.S. Grand Prix Pole Ahead of Max Verstappen
Antonelli beat Verstappen to Austin pole with a 1:34.035 lap ahead of Sunday’s race.
Kimi Antonelli took pole position for the United States Grand Prix on Saturday, putting Mercedes ahead of Max Verstappen and Isack Hadjar in qualifying at Circuit of the Americas in Austin, Texas.
Antonelli’s first Q3 lap of 1 minute, 34.035 seconds proved sufficient for his seventh pole of the 2026 season, Formula 1’s official qualifying results confirmed. Verstappen clocked 1:34.214, finishing 0.179 seconds behind, with Hadjar third in the second Red Bull.
Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton qualified fourth and fifth for Ferrari. George Russell was sixth in the other Mercedes, followed by Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris. Norris lost a lap to track limits and ended the session eighth.
The qualifying result gives Antonelli a favorable starting position on a weekend when the championship leader can secure the drivers’ title. Saturday’s session itself did not decide the championship; the outcome depends on Sunday’s race.
Antonelli’s Austin title scenarios explain the conditions. His pole lap supplies the latest development ahead of the Grand Prix, with Verstappen alongside him at the front of the qualifying order.
