Kimi Antonelli secured a brilliant pole position during qualifying for the Belgian Grand Prix. Driving for Mercedes, he finished over half a second ahead of his title rival and teammate George Russell, who ended up in fourth position. Antonelli, currently holding a 25-point lead in the standings, outpaced Red Bull’s Max Verstappen by 0.317 seconds, despite Verstappen receiving a tactical slipstream from teammate Isack Hadjar.
Lando Norris of McLaren claimed a strong third place, trailing the leader by 0.440 seconds. However, the world champion is set to drop 10 places on the starting grid due to an engine component penalty. Behind them, Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton took fifth and sixth, followed by Oscar Piastri and rookie Arvid Lindblad.
Antonelli has dominated the weekend since Friday practice, marking his sixth pole in ten outings. After his final lap, he dedicated the performance to his father, Marco, who is celebrating his 61st birthday. While Verstappen acknowledged that Hadjar’s assistance was crucial for his front-row start, Norris remained optimistic about his own race prospects despite his upcoming grid demotion, noting that the Spa circuit offers ample room for overtaking.
