Kimi Antonelli claimed his second pole position of the season at Suzuka, edging out team-mate George Russell by 0.298 seconds. The Italian set a 1:28.778 on his opening Q3 lap, the only driver to break into the 1:28s, while McLaren’s Oscar Piastri finished just behind Russell.
Neither Antonelli, Russell, nor Piastri improved on their final Q3 attempts, securing Antonelli the first Mercedes pole at Suzuka since Lewis Hamilton in 2018 and marking the 50th pole for an Italian driver. He is also the first Italian since Jarno Trulli in 2004 to take multiple poles in a single season.
Charles Leclerc...