Antonelli claims Spa pole as Mercedes outpaces Verstappen by three tenths
Mercedes driver Kimi Antonelli claimed pole position for the Belgian Grand Prix, underlining his team's engineering superiority over Red Bull and putting him on course to cement a 25-point championship lead that carries major commercial stakes for the European constructor.
Kimi Antonelli will start Sunday's Belgian Grand Prix from pole position after a commanding qualifying display at Spa-Francorchamps. The 19-year-old Italian put his Mercedes on top spot for the sixth time in 10 races this season, beating Red Bull’s Max Verstappen by three tenths of a second.
The performance underscores Mercedes' current technical advantage in the fiercely competitive European motorsport sector. Antonelli holds a 25-point lead in the world championship, a margin that has shrunk from 68 points due to recent reliability issues but remains a crucial buffer.
Despite his outright speed, Antonelli faces a precarious race start. The unique layout of the Ardennes circuit, featuring a short run to the first corner followed by a 1.25-mile uphill drag to Turn Five, leaves the polesitter heavily exposed to slipstreaming.
"With Max next to me it's not going to be straightforward," Antonelli said. "It's going to be important to get a good start and then be ahead into Turn Five."
None of the last four polesitters at Spa have won the race, with the lead changing hands at Turn Five in each of the last three years. Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff acknowledged the tactical risk, stating: "On pole here is great for Saturday but I'm not sure I'd want to be on pole going through Eau Rouge for the first time. They're going to be breathing up his neck."
Verstappen qualified second, aided by a tow from Red Bull teammate Isack Hadjar. "He would just pass me on the straights," Verstappen said. "We are three tenths down in qualy with a massive tow. So that's six tenths down in qualy, realistically. It's not a fight in the race."
Verstappen instead predicted his race would be about "looking in the mirrors" at George Russell and the Ferraris of Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton. Russell lines up third but continues to experience a straight-line speed deficit to his teammate. "When it feels like you are battling with one had behind your back, it's a challenge," Russell said.
Antonelli has not won in his last three races after a streak of five victories between March and early June. He noted that tyre degradation will be a critical factor over the 44-lap distance. "Of course, deg is big, especially the left-hand side is struggling a lot in this track," Antonelli said. "But we try to get a good start and then hopefully we'll have a good pace and try off in the distance."
