Kimi Antonelli became the youngest pole sitter in F1 history, beating Mercedes teammate George Russell in qualifying for the Chinese Grand Prix.
Russell appeared to have an advantage over Antonelli after winning the sprint earlier on Saturday, but he suffered a technical issue late in qualifying and was limited to just one lap in the rush at the end of the session.
Antonelli made the most of his two clean runs, posting a time of 1:32.064 on his second attack, beating Russell by 0.222 seconds. Mercedes secured a spot on the front row for the third time in the qualifying session this season.
The 19-year-old will break the record set by four-time world champion Sebastian Vettel. Vettel won his first F1 pole position at the age of 21 at the 2008 Italian Grand Prix while playing for Toro Rosso.
“It was a pretty clean session, so I’m really happy,” said Antonelli, who won the sprint pole at last year’s Miami Grand Prix during his rookie season.
“George had a problem in Q3 and it was great to see him on two sets (of tires). I saw him having a problem and tried to stay calm and stay focused and do a good lap.”
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George Russell had a problem with his Mercedes and stopped at the start of Q3.
Lewis Hamilton produced another encouraging performance as he narrowly edged out Ferrari teammate Charles Leclerc for third place. The difference between the two was just under 1/100th of a second, finishing 3 tenths behind Antonelli.
Oscar Piastri beat McLaren teammate Lando Norris to fifth place, with the reigning constructors’ champion showing some improvement but still lacking the pace to challenge for pole position.
Max Verstappen had a difficult start to the season with Red Bull, qualifying only eighth, finishing behind Alpine’s Pierre Gasly.
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Max Verstappen posted dismal numbers after finishing ninth in the Chinese GP sprint race.
Verstappen’s teammate Izak Hajjar was ninth ahead of Haas’s Oliver Bearman, but the French driver was lucky to get through Q2 after Gabriel Bortleto’s spin-off brought out a yellow flag and denied several others a chance to knock out the Red Bull.
The six drivers eliminated in Q1 were the same as those in the previous day’s sprint qualifying, with Carlos Sainz holding off teammate Alex Albon in 17th place, marking Williams’ very disappointing start to the season.
Aston Martin suffered a further blow with engine trouble, with F1 newcomer Lance Stroll losing out to Valtteri Bottas in 20th place in Cadillac.
Russell’s “Damage Limitation”
Since Mercedes unleashed their pace in last weekend’s season-opening Australian Grand Prix, Russell appeared to have a significant advantage over his younger teammate.
The Briton comfortably beat Antonelli in Australia and Friday’s China sprint qualifying, winning both races.
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Highlights of the 2026 Chinese GP sprint race.
This pattern looked set to continue in Shanghai on Saturday, but Russell was plagued by a series of problems in the late session business.
Russell, who was already lapping easily enough to qualify for Q2, reported a problem with his front wing and requested a replacement, as well as a check on the floor of his car.
Appearing for his first run in Q3, he suddenly stopped on the track and, after coming to a painful standstill, managed to get his W17 back into the garage.
The mechanics quickly got the car ready to return to the track, but only in time for Russell to complete one flying lap. Adding more drama was the fact that Russell would be the last of all drivers to set a time in Q3.
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Qualifying for the Chinese Grand Prix came to a thrilling conclusion as Kimi Antonelli took pole position.
Although Russell ultimately failed to come within two-tenths of Antonelli’s best time, the second place he regained was a much better result than the tenth he would have been had he not made the time.
“There’s definitely a limit to the damage,” Russell said. “In Q2, the front wing broke and we were worried about that. Then in Q3 we obviously went off track, the car stopped on the track, the car wouldn’t restart, we couldn’t change gears.
“I’m happy to be here. At the start of the last lap we had no battery, no tire temperature, nothing. But the team did a really great job to get us to this position. It could have been a lot worse.”
Sky Sports F1 China GP Schedule
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A look back at the wildest moments captured on camera at the Chinese Grand Prix
Sunday March 15th
2:35am: F1 Academy Race 2*
5:30am: Preparation for Chinese Grand Prix: Grand Prix Sunday*
7am: Chinese Grand Prix*
9am: Chinese GP reaction: Checkered flag*
10am: Ted’s Notes*
*Also held at Sky Sports Main Event
F1 will host the first sprint weekend of the 2026 season in Shanghai with the Chinese Grand Prix, which will be broadcast live on Sky Sports F1. Stream Sky Sports now – cancel anytime with no contract
