Kimi Antonelli saw off the challenge of his Mercedes teammate George Russell to take his second successive Formula One pole position at the Suzuka International Raceway.
The result is the 50th pole position if Formula One for an Italian driver, who had a much cleaner session than teammate Russell, who was battling balance issues throughout the session.
Three tenths of a second split the top two, while Oscar Piastri took third position in his McLaren as he hopes to finally complete a Grand Prix lap in 2026 following dramas in both Grands Prix this season.
The fast-starting Ferrari of Charles Lerclerc goes from fourth ahead of the second McLaren of Lando Norris, while Lewis Hamilton starts tomorrow’s race from sixth.
Isack Hadjar was eighth in the sole Red Bull to get through the third qualifying session, starting behind French compatriot Pierre Gasly’s Alpine, while Gabriel Bortoleto’s Audi and Arvid Lindblad’s RB complete the top ten.
The first qualifying session provided only one shock as Ollie Bearman, one of the form drivers so far in 2026, was a surprise elimination in 18th for Haas to miss out on Q2 by a tenth of a second.
He shares the ninth row with the Williams of Alex Albon, while a more familiar tale was told on the back two rows of the grid as Sergio Perez led an all-Cadillac row 10 in 19th ahead of Valterri Bottas.
Fernando Alonso bested Aston Martin teammate Lance Stroll to start 21st, almost two seconds off of last man in Franco Colapinto, as their Honda Power Unit issues were laid bare at the manufacturer’s home race.
The second qualifying session provided a bigger shock as Max Verstappen, who had won from pole at Suzuka for four seasons in a row since 2022, was the big casualty in his Red Bull.
He was knocked out by Lindblad on his first visit to the circuit, with Esteban Ocon out in 12th ahead of the Audi of Nico Hulkenberg.
Liam Lawson could only produce a lap quick enough for 14th as Franco Colapinto in the Alpine and Carlos Sainz’s Williams completed the eliminations.
In the third session, Antonelli set what would turn out to be the pole position time first time out with a 1:28.778, and in truth it never looked like that would be toppled as a session beset by oversteer in the final sector limited British driver Russell’s threat – the King’s Lynn native later said that he was “lucky to be second this weekend” following a second successive difficult qualifying session.
Charles Leclerc was the last man to challenge but a snap of oversteer at the Spoon corner cost the Monegasque driver time and speed in the final sector, with the Ferrari team hoping their famed race starts will pull him back into contention.
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