Kimi Antonelli secured pole position for the Japanese Grand Prix in Suzuka, beating his Mercedes teammate George Russell by 0.298 seconds. The Italian teenager, fresh from his maiden victory in China two weeks ago, delivered a composed performance to top qualifying.
Russell, who holds a four-point championship lead over Antonelli, could not match the pace of his younger teammate and complained about the handling of his car during the session. Oscar Piastri qualified third for McLaren, ahead of Ferrari's Charles Leclerc in fourth.
World champion Lando Norris will start fifth, with Lewis Hamilton sixth and Max Verstappen down in 11th. Russell won the season opener in Australia, but Antonelli laid down a championship marker by winning from pole in Shanghai.
The Japanese Grand Prix will be broadcast live on Sky Sports in the UK, with coverage starting at 4:30am GMT. Sky subscribers can watch via the Sky Go app, while non-subscribers can use NOWTV. In the US, all sessions are streamed on Apple TV, which offers a seven-day free trial.
