Formula 1: Kimi Antonelli scores pole position for the Miami Grand Prix

3 weeks ago 13

Mercedes and Kimi Antonelli are still the team to beat after Formula 1’s month-long hiatus.

The points leader scored the pole Saturday afternoon for Sunday’s Miami Grand Prix (4 p.m. ET, Apple TV) ahead of a late charge by Max Verstappen. Antonelli won the second and third races of the season in China and Japan ahead of the cancellation of both the Bahrain Grand Prix and Saudi Arabian Grand Prix because of the Iran War.

It’s the third straight pole position for Antonelli after he started first in each of those races in Asia and has a seven-point lead on teammate George Russell in the standings.

Verstappen’s qualifying pace was surprising as Red Bull has been a disappointment so far in 2026. His late lap in the final round of qualifying pushed him ahead of Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc and McLaren’s Lando Norris. Russell will start fifth, ahead of Leclerc’s teammate Lewis Hamilton and Norris’ teammate Oscar Piastri.

With no races in the month of April, the intrigue ahead of the Miami Grand Prix centered on which teams could close the big gap Mercedes had on the rest of the field. While it’s clear that teams have caught up, Antonelli’s performance over the course of the weekend shows that there’s still a ways to go for everyone else.

Still, there could be a great opportunity for a non-Mercedes winner on Sunday. The afternoon forecast calls for rain and thunderstorms. If the race can be held on a wet track — and there’s no lightning around — there’s no obvious indicator that Mercedes will keep its advantage.

On Saturday, the FIA declared Sunday’s race a “rain hazard” to allow teams to make adjustments to their cars in case it rains on Sunday. Teams are typically prevented from making all but the most minor of tweaks between qualifying and the Grand Prix.

McLaren goes 1-2 in the sprint race

McLaren became the first team outside of Mercedes to win a Grand Prix or sprint race on Saturday with Lando Norris’ sprint race win ahead of qualifying. Norris started first for the sprint after qualifying on Friday and easily had enough pace to go unchallenged over the 19-lap race.

However, that pace didn’t translate to qualifying later Saturday afternoon. Norris and Piastri were not credible threats for the pole position as Norris was nearly 0.400 seconds back of Antonelli and Piastri was over seven tenths of a second behind.

Verstappen finished sixth in the sprint behind the McLaren drivers, Leclerc and the Mercedes drivers after passing Hamilton during the race. But it’s clear that Red Bull has at least figured out some one-lap pace in Miami. Will that translate to speed in the Grand Prix?

Cadillac and Aston Martin are still very slow

There was no sudden speed increase for the two slowest teams on the grid. Cadillac’s Valtteri Bottas and Sergio Perez qualified 20th and 21st in the team’s first home Grand Prix. Only Audi’s Gabriel Bortoleto was behind them and that’s because Bortoleto’s car was having significant mechanical issues.

The Aston Martins of Fernando Alonso and Lance Stroll were 18th and 19th and were not miles off the pace like they have been so far this season. But they don’t look close to catching any of the other nine teams ahead of them anytime soon.