Kimi Antonelli of Mercedes secured pole position for the Japanese Grand Prix, leading teammate George Russell in qualifying. This marks Antonelli’s second consecutive pole and a Mercedes front-row lock-out for the third race in a row.
Earlier Saturday, Antonelli was fastest in final practice with a time of 1 minute, 29.362 seconds, closely followed by Russell. Lando Norris of McLaren faced further reliability issues.
Friday’s opening practice saw George Russell set the pace at 1 minute, 31.666 seconds, with Antonelli just behind. Norris and Oscar Piastri of McLaren were third and fourth respectively. McLaren is hoping for a smoother weekend after recent electrical problems in China and Australia.
The forecast for Sunday’s race is sunny with temperatures around 18 Celsius (65 F). Russell and Antonelli, winners of the last two races, are considered favorites.