F1 | Chinese GP qualifying: Antonelli claims pole as Ferrari impresses
Good morning and welcome to the second qualifying session of the season. After such an intense Sprint Race, it’s time for the official qualifying that will set the starting grid for Sunday’s Chinese GP. Here’s a summary of what happened in Shanghai.
Q1: Leclerc pushes, Colapinto fights back
As the lights turned green, drivers quickly hit the track, with the two Mercedes taking their time to prepare. Most drivers went out on soft tires, except Verstappen, Hamilton, and Hadjar on medium. With eleven minutes remaining, the top five were Piastri leading, followed by Hülkenberg and Bortoleto, with Leclerc in seventh. Meanwhile, both Mercedes drivers finally joined the track, with Russell leading and Antonelli just 34 thousandths behind.
Hamilton returned to the pits for a stop after compromising his medium tires early in the session. On softs, he climbed to third, two-tenths off Russell. Verstappen was 11th. With five minutes left, Lindblad was called in for a technical issue. In the final moments, Leclerc led Q1, followed by Russell and Antonelli. Verstappen finished fourth and Hamilton fifth. The drivers eliminated in Q1 were: Sainz, Albon, Alonso, Bottas, Stroll, and Pérez. Alpine performed well with both cars advancing.
Q2: Antonelli sets the pace, Bearman and Gasly shine
Drivers quickly returned to the track. Antonelli and Russell were the first to set flying laps, with Russell posting 1:32.523 ahead of Hamilton and Leclerc. Antonelli was fourth, Verstappen fifth, and Ollie Bearman impressively sixth. Lando Norris led the McLaren pair in seventh. Eight minutes from the end, the provisional first elimination was Nico Hülkenberg in 11th.
After a brief pit stop, drivers went back out. In the final seconds, a yellow flag appeared due to Bortoleto running wide into the gravel in the last sector. The Brazilian made it back to the pits but did not pass the cut. Q2 eliminations were: Hülkenberg, Colapinto, Ocon, Lawson, Lindblad, and Bortoleto. Gasly and Bearman delivered excellent performances to advance to Q3.
Q3: A first pole to remember
In the final minutes, Russell, Antonelli, Leclerc, and Hamilton were first on track. Early on, Antonelli stopped briefly due to a gearbox issue but was able to continue. On their first flying laps, Antonelli set 1:32.322, leading Leclerc and Hamilton, with Leclerc three-tenths off pole. Russell returned to the pits, while the McLarens advanced, with Piastri in second and Norris third. Five minutes from the end, the top five stood: Antonelli, Piastri, Norris, Leclerc, Hamilton.
All drivers returned to the pits. Mercedes replaced Russell’s steering wheel, leaving him with only one final attempt. He rejoined with two minutes left, while the rest of the drivers launched their last laps. At the checkered flag, Andrea Kimi Antonelli claimed pole position with 1:32.064, followed by Russell. Ferrari locked out the second row. Verstappen qualified eighth. Below is the full Q3 classification.
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