Kimi Antonelli hits wall as George Russell takes F1 Azerbaijan GP pole
Kimi Antonelli was left ruing an uncharacteristic error in qualifying for the Azerbaijan Grand Prix which eliminated the championship leader in the first session after he hit a wall in Baku. His Mercedes teammate George Russell claimed pole with a fine lap and will be in a strong position to make up ground in the title chase in Saturday’s race.
TL;DR
- Championship leader Kimi Antonelli crashed in qualifying for the Azerbaijan Grand Prix after hitting a wall.
- Antonelli will start the race from 16th on the grid due to the incident.
- George Russell, Antonelli's Mercedes teammate, claimed pole position for the race.
- Antonelli has a significant championship lead but aims to recover from his rare error.
- Russell's pole position puts him in a strong position to gain points in the title chase.
- McLaren showed improved performance with upgrades, with Oscar Piastri qualifying third.
- Charles Leclerc qualified second, marking the biggest gap to pole this season.
- Max Verstappen qualified eighth and Lewis Hamilton qualified sixth.