Kimi Antonelli takes United States GP pole by 0.179s from Max Verstappen

Kimi Antonelli will start the United States Grand Prix from pole position after a 1:34.035 in Q3 at the Circuit of The Americas, 0.179 seconds faster than Max Verstappen. Isack Hadjar put the second Red Bull third, 0.215 seconds off pole, ahead of the Ferraris of Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton. It is Antonelli’s seventh pole of the season.

Start times (local, CET and US Eastern) and how to watch: United States GP 2026 schedule. Full times from Q1 to Q3: United States GP 2026 qualifying results.

The final runs changed nothing at the front

Qualifying came down to a fight between Verstappen and the two Mercedes, and it was settled on the first runs in Q3. Racing Bulls kept Arvid Lindblad and Liam Lawson in the garage, and the eight drivers who went out again brought no real improvement. Antonelli had a big moment on his final lap that nearly cost him the car and abandoned it. Verstappen, who looked to be on course for pole, lost the rear and the time with it.

Antonelli put it down to the wind. “Q3 was very tough with the wind, very gusty and unpredictable,” he said in the FIA’s post-session report. “I’m happy that we stuck it on pole.”

Verstappen had expected more after setting his best Q2 time on a used set of tyres. “I just didn’t really have the grip that I wanted, so I couldn’t lean on the rear the way I wanted in the final sector, and that just cost me too much time,” he said in the FIA press conference. On the last lap it got worse: “So, you try to push a bit more, you hit the bump wrong, and the car is like a kangaroo, so you just have a massive slide and you know the lap is over.” The bumps at COTA were already his main complaint on Thursday, when he called them unacceptable for his back.

Hadjar third after a weekend of deleted laps

Hadjar was delighted over team radio, and with reason. He came to Austin eighth in the championship on 97 points, and his weekend had started badly. “It’s been a disaster of a weekend for me. I’ve had all my lap times deleted all the time,” he said. He felt pole was possible, but blamed “a massive, massive tailwind in Turns 13 and 15” on his first Q3 lap: “I’m happy to be third, even though I think we had a better shot at pole.”

Ferrari faded when it mattered

Ferrari looked a contender in practice and early qualifying. Leclerc was quickest in Q2 with a 1:34.198, a time that would have been good for second on the grid, but neither he nor Hamilton could go faster in Q3. Leclerc is fourth, Hamilton fifth, both within three tenths of pole.

George Russell qualified sixth in the second Mercedes. McLaren had a poor afternoon: Lando Norris lost his best Q3 lap for exceeding track limits and drops to eighth behind Oscar Piastri.

Three penalties reshape the rest of the grid. Lindblad starts 14th after a five-place drop for an additional power unit element, Franco Colapinto takes ten places and starts 21st, and Gabriel Bortoleto starts from the back. Lawson and Pierre Gasly move up to ninth and tenth.

Antonelli can be champion if Russell and Hamilton fall back

Antonelli leads the championship on 340 points, 102 ahead of Russell (238) and 111 ahead of Hamilton (229). He is world champion on Sunday if he wins, Russell finishes ninth or lower and Hamilton fifth or lower. All the scenarios are in our title permutations.

“It does feel a little bit different, but the goal stays the same,” Antonelli said. “I’m going to try to win, and then we’ll see what happens.” Verstappen, beside him on the front row, was generous: “Kimi fully deserves all the success that he’s having.”

Our view: pole is only one of the three boxes

Pole gives Antonelli the best chance of the win he needs, but the other two boxes are out of his hands. Hamilton starts fifth and only has to gain one place to keep the title open, Russell starts sixth and only has to stay in the top eight. Behind Antonelli sit two Red Bulls, and Hadjar already sees the opportunity: “It’s the two of us, so it’s a bit of an advantage. So we’ll try and use that.” The start into Turn 1 may decide more than the rest of the race, and the most likely outcome is still that the title goes to Mexico.

The United States Grand Prix starts at 15:00 local, 21:00 CET and 16:00 ET

The race on Sunday 25 October runs over 56 laps. The clocks in Europe went back overnight, so the start is at 21:00 CET.

Will Antonelli win from pole and be crowned in Austin, or can Verstappen and Hadjar use their two-car attack to send the title fight to Mexico? Tell us in the comments.