Kimi Antonelli delivered a sensational performance to claim pole position for the British Grand Prix at Silverstone Circuit, setting a blistering 1:28.111 in the final phase of qualifying. The young Mercedes-AMG Petronas Formula One Team driver edged out Charles Leclerc by 0.175 seconds, while seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton secured third for Scuderia Ferrari in a tightly contested session.

Antonelli speaking after the session:

“A bit stressed because I never like going first for the last run!

“The last lap was very tidy. I have t to be honest, it came altogether. It was very tricky with the wind because it was very gusty and unpredictable.

“But we built out way through qualifying. To bring the pole home is very satisfying.

“We didn’t change the car at all – just differential, brake migration, driving. We worked around it and managed to find good settings that helped me to progress through qualifying.”

Qualifying got underway with early drama in Q1 when George Russell ran wide and hit the barriers, damaging his front wing. The Briton was fortunate to keep the car running and limp back to the pits for repairs.

It was Isack Hadjar who topped the opening segment with a 1:29.276, while Hamilton, running on a used set of soft tyres, finished sixth and 0.368 seconds adrift of the pace.

Knocked out in Q1 were Fernando Alonso, Lance Stroll, Sergio Perez, Franco Colapinto, Valtteri Bottas and Esteban Ocon.

In Q2, Ferrari sent both Hamilton and Leclerc out on fresh soft tyres as they looked to build momentum. Antonelli again showed his pace, topping the session with a 1:28.493 to stamp his authority on the field.

Eliminated at that stage were Alexander Albon, Carlos Sainz Jr., Oliver Bearman, Nico Hülkenberg, Pierre Gasly and Gabriel Bortoleto.

Q3 saw Antonelli strike first with a 1:28.385 on his opening run, with Russell just 0.096 seconds behind and Hamilton 0.206 off the benchmark. But it was on the final runs where the Italian truly delivered, lowering the mark to a 1:28.111 and leaving the rest chasing.

Leclerc improved on his final attempt but could only manage a 1:28.286, while Hamilton lost crucial time in the middle sector and settled for third with a 1:28.458.

Leclerc after qualifying:

“It’s been a few tough races where the feeling was not quite right, where I was struggling to put everything together.

“On the Sundays we’ve had things that have stopped us scoring points, so to be back with a good feeling, there’s been so much work behind the scenes to get back that feeling inside the car.

“But today is probably the first time where I had it back, so that is a good thing, but at the same time, I know how much I’ve struggled to be consistent recently, so it’s only the beginning but it’s a good step in the right direction.

“At the moment, I’m obviously trying to look at a bit of everything, because I was losing quite a bit of time. I just didn’t have much pace recently, so you’ve got to look at every single thing you do, whether it’s driving style, or everything really.

“We’ve worked, I think, really well, and I’m happy with that P2. I wish I was on pole but Kimi did an incredible lap and he deserves it.”

Hamilton after qualifying:

“I’m happy to be up here. Both of these guys [Antonelli and Leclerc] did a great job.

“Charles has been making good improvements and we just didn’t have the pace of the Mercedes, which has been a thing for a while. But we are slowly closing the gap and to have both of us up here is great for the team.”

“It’s definitely great to have both of us here. Whether or not we can fully keep up with Kimi, we will see but hopefully we can play with the strategy and work as a team to try to topple them. We will do our best for sure.”

Russell will line up fourth for Mercedes, ahead of Red Bulls’ Hadjar in fifth. Championship contenders Lando Norris and Max Verstappen could only manage sixth and seventh respectively, while Oscar Piastri starts eighth.

Racing Bulls rookie Arvid Lindblad impressed with ninth, while teammate Liam Lawson rounded out the top 10.