Kimi Antonelli took pole position for the F1 2026 Chinese Grand Prix, making history as the youngest pole-sitter in Formula One history at 19 years, 6 months and 17 days old. He broke the record previously held by Sebastian Vettel (2008). It seems as though the young racer redeemed himself well after a disappointing Sprint race.
The qualifying session for the Grand Prix took place on Saturday, March 14, following the morning's Sprint race. On the First Run, Kimi set the initial benchmark with a 1:32.322, taking provisional pole by over two-tenths against the McLarens and Ferraris. On his second set of fresh softs, he improved his time to a 1:32.064 in Q3.
George Russell, who won the Sprint earlier in the day, had a chaotic Q3. After his front wing broke at the end of Q2, he stopped on track during his first out-lap in Q3 with a gearbox issue (stuck in 3rd gear). Mercedes managed a hard reset and a steering wheel swap, allowing him one final flying lap on cold tyres to secure P2.
The Red Bull RB22 continued to look difficult to drive. Max Verstappen qualified a distant P8, over 0.9s off the pace, describing the car's balance as undriveable in the low-speed sectors. His rookie teammate Isack Hadjar followed in P9. Pierre Gasly delivered a standout performance for Alpine, splitting the McLarens and Red Bulls to take P7, confirming the team's improved aero package for the 2026 regulations.
Ollie Bearman (Haas) secured another Top 10 start (P10), while Arvid Lindblad (Racing Bulls) struggled to find pace after his morning DNF, qualifying P15. The technical issues persisted for Fernando Alonso (P19) and Lance Stroll (P21) were eliminated in Q1, as were both Cadillac drivers, with Sergio Perez starting at the very back.