03/05/2025 15:20
Kimi Antonelli believes he left time on the table across the lap
that saw him storm to pole position for the sprint at the Miami
Grand Prix. The Mercedes driver topped the grid-setting session for
the shortened race in Florida, beating McLaren's Oscar Piastri by
less than half-a-tenth of a second. In doing so, he became the
youngest driver in F1 history to claim pole, aged 18 years, eight
months and eight days. However, Sebastian Vettel's grand prix pole
record endures, with the German starting a full-distance race from
first aged 21 years, two months and 11 days old. That came at the
2008 Italian Grand Prix, which the four-time F1 drivers' champion
went on to win. Reflecting on the stunning result at the Miami
International Autodrome, Antonelli could not help being - at least
slightly - self-critical, despite saying he was "super happy" with
his performance. "I did not see that coming, to be honest, no." he
told Sky Sports F1 . "No, I felt the lap was good, and I was happy
with it, with how it came together. "There were still a few bits
where I could have done a bit better, but still super happy with
how I put all the sectors together. "Now, I will enjoy this moment
a little bit more, but at the same time, I'm gonna try to focus [on
the sprint], because it will be good to repeat ourselves." Chasing
a first victory Antonelli does have designs on a first race win in
the Sunshine State, but acknowledged a grand prix victory would be
tough to achieve. When asked whether he would expect to reach the
top step of the podium soon, he played it down, having not yet
earned a trip to the rostrum at all. "That's a big, big target,"
the Italian driver said. "We know the McLarens and Ferrari, also
Red Bull... we know their race pace is really strong, but I think
we're pretty close all together. "So, it'll be important to have a
good start [in the sprint], and then trying to set a good pace
without taking too much [life out the tyres], and then in
qualifying trying to do an even better lap." How soon do you think
Kimi Antonelli will win his first grand prix in F1? Let us know by
voting below in the latest poll by RacingNews365 .
