Mercedes rookie Kimi Antonelli has stunned the grid by claiming his first-ever sprint pole position at the Miami Grand Prix, making history at just 18 years old. His impressive time of 1m26.482s during Friday’s sprint qualifying beat out both McLaren drivers, with Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris falling short by less than a tenth of a second.
Max Verstappen placed fourth, just ahead of George Russell, with Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton following closely for Ferrari. Alex Albon secured eighth for Williams, while Isack Hadjar impressed in ninth for Racing Bulls, and Fernando Alonso rounded out the top ten for Aston Martin.
The top 10 shootout saw Russell and Verstappen take early laps on a quieter track. But as conditions improved, the rest of the field joined in a late push. Verstappen’s second attempt improved his time, but not enough to beat Antonelli, who celebrated his remarkable achievement with visible excitement.
Earlier, traffic chaos in SQ1 hindered several drivers, with Doohan, Tsunoda, Bearman, and Bortoleto all missing out on a final flying lap. Hadjar managed to bounce back from an early error to progress into SQ2, where Sainz, Gasly, and Ocon were later eliminated.
The Miami Sprint Race will run over 19 laps on Saturday, continuing the high-stakes action at the Miami Autodrome.
