Kimi Antonelli roared to pole for the Belgian Grand Prix to keep himself in charge of the Formula One title fight.
The Italian teenager trounced his nearest challenger in the drivers’ standings George Russell, who qualified a disappointing fourth on another weekend of relative struggle.
Red Bull’s Max Verstappen and McLaren’s defending world champion Lando Norris were second and third fastest (though the Briton drops 10 places down the grid owing to an engine change).
But it was the gap between Antonelli and Russell, of more than five-tenths, that was most stark. Although Antonelli has not won since the Monaco Grand Prix on June 7, he has remained the man to beat as Russell chipped away at his lead to draw within 25 points of his 19-year-old rival.
Antonelli had impressed all weekend, throughout practice and every stage of qualifying. Verstappen, however, made him work for his sixth pole of his breakthrough campaign. The Dutchman took a smart tow from his team-mate Isack Hadjar to set the pace before Antonelli stole the front spot by an emphatic three-tenths.
Ferrari pair Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton were fifth and sixth best.
Mercedes’ Kimi Antonelli celebrates after taking pole position for Sunday’s Belgian Grand Prix
In the end, Hamilton was relieved to have got out for qualifying at all, having crashed in practice barely more than a couple of hours earlier.
The seven-time world champion’s rear-right wheel was hanging on by its tether after a shuddering impact with a barrier at the Fagnes bend in the final seconds of the session.
‘I destroyed the car,’ Hamilton reported over the radio.
It left his Ferrari mechanics in a race against the clock to fit new suspension, floor, rear wing and gearbox in time to send Hamilton out for competitive action. They pulled it off, but it was hardly the ideal preparation.
‘We’ve lost a lot of temperature in the garage,’ bemoaned Hamilton, who is third in the championship, 32 points adrift. He was never in the hunt for pole.
It was a case of deja vu at the bottom of the table. Propping up the rest, predictably enough was Lance Stroll in his abject Aston Martin (their major upgrade is due next weekend in Hungary, watch out!). A place above Stroll languished Fernando Alonso in the other racing-green car. They were five seconds off the pace.
Above the Astons lay the Cadillacs of Sergio Perez and Valtteri Bottas. The American team are newcomers so at least have that legitimate excuse not to be top-end challengers. To their credit, they were more than two seconds ahead of the Astons.
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