Can you believe Russell’s blistering pole as Antonelli crashes out in Q1?
Antonelli slammed the Turn 1 barrier, mangling the front‑left suspension of his Mercedes W17. He had a Q2‑making time, yet he’ll likely start no better than sixteenth.
Russell, fresh from dominant Thursday practice, ripped into a pole‑setting lap, edging Leclerc and Piastri for his fifth front‑row start of the season.
McLaren shocked early Q3 when Piastri and Norris briefly topped Russell’s time, after a chaotic practice weekend that left the team scrambling for a clean lap.
Piastri’s 1:43.571 proved a benchmark, but Russell sliced half a second off it on his second run, posting 1:43.037 and leaving the field scrambling.
On his final attempt Russell shaved another half‑second, sealing a 1:42.526 pole that left rivals in his wake.
Ferrari delayed its first run, nudging Leclerc into provisional second and then a tenth lower to lock that spot, still a full 0.8 s off Russell’s pace.
Isack Hadjar celebrated a fourth‑place start after returning from injury, while Norris fell to fifth behind Hamilton; Gasly was seventh, Verstappen eighth after a suspected energy‑deployment glitch and a yellow‑flag slowdown.
Sainz exploited the upgraded FW48 to grab ninth, and Colapinto’s erratic Q3 run left him just outside the top ten.
George Russell, Mercedes
Russell topped Q2 with a late 1:43.462, edging Verstappen by two tenths and promising a tight pole battle.
The fight for the final Q3 spots was season‑tight as Williams surged, with Sainz snatching ninth and Alpine’s Colapinto stealing tenth from Bearman in the dying seconds.
Racing Bulls suffered in Q2, with Lawson 12th, Albon and Ocon filling the remaining Haas spots, while Lindblad managed 15th after a rookie‑fuelled FP2 crash, according to Alan Permane.
Russell led Q1 after Antonelli vanished, dropping Verstappen with a 1:43.615 lap; Williams comfortably progressed with both upgraded cars.
Audi felt the power‑unit gap on the high‑speed circuit as Bortoleto and Hulkenberg fell 17th and 18th, while Cadillac and Aston Martin were also eliminated, and Alonso and Stroll face grid penalties for Honda changes.
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For my money, Norris’s slip shows the McLaren car still needs work.
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