AUSTIN – Andrea Kimi Antonelli has laboured to results recently due to the drop in performance from his upgraded Mercedes, but his pole position for the United States Grand Prix signals changes.
The Italian took top spot in qualifying for Sunday’s race, a race in which he could become World Champion, results permitting.
Antonelli threw up the form book, banishing Max Verstappen to second place, with Ferrari’s challenge falling away after topping all free practice sessions.
The W17 has failed to win a Grand Prix since teammate George Russell’s triumph in Baku, with its upgrades package failing to fully deliver, with Red Bull overtaking them in Malaysia and Singapore.
Speaking after qualifying, Antonelli identified exactly where the car feels far better on the Circuit of the Americas, placing him in a position to take, at the very least, a win that takes his title bid a step further.
“Medium speed corner. High speed, medium speed, it felt in a good place, the car,” he told media, including Motorsport Week, when asked where the car felt good.
“We still struggled a little bit in low speed, but overall, yeah, the car has been very good in sector one and sector two, especially through eight and nine.
“So, yeah, that’s where we feel the most gains from the package is still the low speed that we’re trying to understand.”
Antonelli will still be mindful of the threat from Max Verstappen, who starts second, backed-up by his Red Bull teammate Isack Hadjar, who scored a superb third place.
READ MORE – F1 2026 US Grand Prix – Qualifying Results
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