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Kimi Antonelli claimed his fifth pole position of the 2026 Formula 1 season at the British Grand Prix, defeating Charles Leclerc in a tense qualifying session at a sunny Silverstone as George Russell’s challenge faded in Q3.
The Mercedes driver improved on his opening run in the final segment to secure his first pole since Monaco, delivering a timely response after Ferrari had threatened to end Mercedes’ unbeaten run in grand prix qualifying this year. Lewis Hamilton’s strong sprint qualifying performance had suggested the Silver Arrows’ streak was vulnerable, but Antonelli’s weekend momentum only built after he passed Hamilton to win Saturday afternoon’s sprint. For more on that earlier Silverstone fight, read how Antonelli beat Hamilton to claim the British GP Sprint win.
Leclerc also found a significant gain on his final Q3 lap, moving into second and pushing Hamilton and Russell down the order. Russell had sat second after the first runs, but his second attempt was more than half a second slower than Antonelli’s benchmark, leaving him fourth behind the two Ferraris.
Hamilton improved on his final lap, but only by a tenth compared with his first effort, leaving him third. Leclerc’s late jump ensured Ferrari split the Mercedes drivers, yet Antonelli’s lap preserved Mercedes’ perfect qualifying record in grands prix this season.
Behind the leading quartet, Isack Hadjar qualified a distant fifth for Red Bull ahead of McLaren’s Lando Norris, with both teams facing a clear pace deficit to Mercedes and Ferrari. Max Verstappen could manage only seventh after reporting power unit deployment issues, while Oscar Piastri struggled for grip on his way to eighth.
Racing Bulls again emerged as the strongest midfield team, with Arvid Lindblad and Liam Lawson locking out the fifth row.
Antonelli had already set the tone in Q2 with a 1m28.493s despite going off track on his first attempt. He finished a tenth clear of Leclerc, with Hamilton and Russell third and fourth. McLaren’s difficulties were evident early, as Norris sat only ninth after the first runs and Piastri was initially in the drop zone before recovering to seventh.
Gabriel Bortoleto missed Q3 by just 0.032s to Lawson and apologised to Audi for not extracting more from the car. Pierre Gasly took 12th for Alpine, ahead of Nico Hulkenberg, Oliver Bearman, Carlos Sainz and Alex Albon.
Gusty conditions complicated Q1, with a tailwind into Copse and crosswind through Maggotts-Becketts. Franco Colapinto spun heavily on his final attempt and stayed 19th. Russell also had a scare at Luffield, damaging his front wing before recovering safely. Bortoleto survived a suspected gearbox issue, while Esteban Ocon was eliminated by Haas team-mate Bearman.
He’s a software engineer with a deep passion for Formula 1 and motorsport. He co-founded Formula Live Pulse to make live telemetry and race insights accessible, visual, and easy to follow.