Kimi Antonelli Seizes F1 US GP Pole and Chance to Seal First World Title
Needs to be 125 points in front after Sunday’s race
TL;DR
- Kimi Antonelli claimed pole position for the US Grand Prix at the Circuit of the Americas.
- Antonelli leads George Russell by 102 points and needs to be 125 points ahead after this race to secure the title.
- To win the title this weekend, Antonelli must win the race and have Russell finish outside the top eight, with Hamilton outside the top four.
- Antonelli's pole is the first for Mercedes at COTA since Valtteri Bottas in 2019.
- Mercedes' recent upgrades, initially difficult to manage, appear to be yielding positive results, with Antonelli's performance boosting team morale.
- Antonelli expressed happiness with the qualifying result, noting the team's hard work on the package and a significant step forward since Singapore.
- Antonelli's pole time was 1 minute 34.035 seconds, nearly two-tenths faster than Verstappen.
- Antonelli is looking to become the youngest F1 world champion at 20 years old.