Russell takes Azerbaijan GP pole as Antonelli qualifies 16th

George Russell claimed pole position for the Azerbaijan Grand Prix on Friday, September 25, setting a 1:42.526 lap to put Mercedes at the front of the grid. Charles Leclerc qualified second for Ferrari, 0.837 seconds behind, and Oscar Piastri took third for McLaren. Championship leader Kimi Antonelli will start 16th after hitting the wall in the first qualifying segment, Q1. Russell improved as qualifying progressed and produced his fastest lap in the closing moments of Q3. Leclerc secured second, with a final time of 1:43.363, while Piastri finished third, a thousandth of a second behind Leclerc. The top three will start ahead of Isack Hadjar, who qualified fourth, and reigning world champion Lando Norris in fifth. Lewis Hamilton was sixth, followed by Pierre Gasly, Max Verstappen, Carlos Sainz and Franco Colapinto. Antonelli’s incident in Q1 ended his chance to contend for the front of the grid. He advanced to Q2 but recorded no time there and qualified 16th. The result is a setback for the championship leader, who entered the weekend with an 81-point advantage over Russell after 14 rounds, according to a report on Thursday’s opening practice.