---
title: "Antonelli wins the Silverstone sprint and takes British Grand Prix pole"
description: "Mercedes teenager Kimi Antonelli turned a narrow qualifying defeat into a commanding Saturday at Silverstone, winning his first Formula 1 sprint race and then claiming pole position for Sunday's British Grand Prix, stretching his lead in the drivers' championship."
category: "Sports"
category_url: https://herald.la/category/sports
author: "Omar Haddad"
published: 2026-07-04T16:50:00.000Z
updated: 2026-07-04T16:50:00.000Z
canonical: https://herald.la/article/antonelli-wins-the-silverstone-sprint-and-takes-british-gp-pole
tags: ["formula-1", "british-grand-prix", "kimi-antonelli", "silverstone", "mercedes"]
---
# Antonelli wins the Silverstone sprint and takes British Grand Prix pole

Mercedes teenager Kimi Antonelli turned a narrow qualifying defeat into a commanding Saturday at Silverstone, winning his first Formula 1 sprint race and then claiming pole position for Sunday's British Grand Prix, stretching his lead in the drivers' championship.

Kimi Antonelli spent Saturday at Silverstone answering a question that has followed him all season: whether the 19-year-old leading the Formula 1 standings can close out the big moments. On a sprint weekend at one of the sport's most demanding circuits, he did it twice.

## From runner-up to sprint winner

Antonelli had come up just short in Friday's sprint qualifying, where Lewis Hamilton put his Ferrari on top by a sliver of 0.011 seconds, [as Formula 1 reported](https://www.formula1.com/en/latest/article/hamilton-snatches-pole-position-in-british-grand-prix-sprint-qualifying-from-antonelli-and-verstappen.52qV7M1yI9KWgWowrlCYlG). The Saturday sprint told a different story. Starting second, Antonelli chased Hamilton through the opening laps and moved decisively into the lead partway through the 100-kilometer dash, then pulled away to win by about 2.7 seconds, with Lando Norris third, [according to Sky Sports](https://www.skysports.com/f1/news/12433/13560318/british-gp-sprint-kimi-antonelli-beats-lewis-hamilton-to-victory-at-silverstone-to-extend-world-championship-lead).

It was Antonelli's first victory in the sprint format, and it widened his advantage over his Mercedes teammate George Russell in the title race to 43 points.

## Pole for the main event

A few hours later, in qualifying for Sunday's Grand Prix, Antonelli went one better. He set the fastest lap of the session, a 1:28.111, to take pole position ahead of Charles Leclerc's Ferrari by 0.175 seconds, [the timing sheets showed](https://www.motorsportweek.com/2026/07/04/f1-2026-british-grand-prix-qualifying-results/). Hamilton, who had set the early pace on home ground, qualified third, with Russell fourth and Red Bull's Isack Hadjar a surprise fifth, [per the full classification](https://www.crash.net/f1/results/1100236/1/2026-f1-silverstone-full-british-gp-qualifying-results). Norris lined up sixth and Max Verstappen seventh.

The pole was Antonelli's latest marker in a breakthrough campaign that has him not only winning races but managing weekends, the harder skill for a young driver. Mercedes has given him a car capable of fighting for pole at almost every circuit, and at Silverstone he made the most of it across both sessions.

## What it sets up

Antonelli starts Sunday's race from the front, with a Ferrari alongside him and Hamilton close behind on a track where the home crowd will be firmly behind the Ferrari drivers. A strong result would tighten his grip on the championship; a poor one would give Russell and the chasing pack a way back in.

For now, the weekend belongs to the teenager. On one of the biggest stages in the sport, Antonelli answered the questions the fast way, by winning.