Antonelli on verge of historic title victory: Hamilton claims pole position

Lewis Hamilton secured pole position for Ferrari at the Grand Prix, the first for the Scuderia this year and the 105th for the 41-year-old Briton since his debut. “That feels so good. I’m lost for words,” Hamilton commented.

George Russell in the second Mercedes finished in second place. Both Hamilton and Russell are still mathematically in the fight for the world championship. Russell trails Antonelli by 123 points, while Hamilton is 124 points behind.

Should Antonelli score at least two points, the championship would be as good as his. This would surpass Sebastian Vettel’s record, who won his first title at the age of 23 in 2010.

Charles Leclerc in the second Ferrari finished third, followed by Verstappen, who receives a penalty due to an incident during practice. Antonelli placed an ice pack on his head before qualifying to stay cool.

In the first qualifying session, the session had to be interrupted due to a red flag after Fernando Alonso parked his Aston Martin in the Foro Sol. Antonelli was initially only placed in ninth position, but improved his position throughout the qualifying session.

Team principal Toto Wolff praised Antonelli’s ability to handle pressure: “He learned early on that he doesn’t let the pressure get to him.”