Andrea Kimi Antonelli impressed everyone when he earned pole position for the Miami Grand Prix Sprint at a track he had never raced at before.
It was the first time for the 18-year-old at the Miami Autodrome and he briefly set the lap record, before it was beaten emphatically by Max Verstappen during qualifying for the Grand Prix.
Damon Hill felt it was ‘tragic’ when Antonelli was also swamped in the Sprint race, having got into a tangle with Oscar Piastri at the start in the wet conditions.
Antonelli would fall victim to a pit lane incident with Verstappen in the Sprint, forcing him to miss his pit box and drive through again. He eventually recovered to P7, before going on to finish in P6 ahead of both Ferraris in the main Grand Prix.
It was a learning weekend for Antonelli, having experienced the highs and lows of F1. Writing in his column for Sky Sports F1, Martin Brundle feels there is one thing he must improve if he wants to be one fo the best in the sport.
Kimi Antonelli must improve tyre management to be one of F1’s best
Antonelli impressed early on in his F1 career by displaying impressive car control in treacherous conditions at the Australian Grand Prix, having been the only rookie to finish.
He was also the only rookie to finish the race in Miami, as others retired due to a mix of reliability and collisions.
Antonelli is currently seven points ahead of Lewis Hamilton in the Drivers’ Championship having enjoyed a strong start to the year, but Brundle thinks there is one thing he needs to focus on to take himself to a higher level in F1.
“18-year-old Kimi Antonelli’s pole position for the Miami Sprint race, and third on the grid for the main Sunday GP, was very much a good news story. He’s a breath of fresh air and a star of the future, even if he was a touch wild and loose in both races. He’ll sort that out, he’s clearly a fast learner,” wrote Brundle.
“Antonelli finished sixth after getting unlucky, having pitted four laps before a VSC. He unsurprisingly has some tidying up to do with tyre management on the longer, hotter stints.”
Kimi Antonelli beat Sebastian Vettel record during Miami Grand Prix weekend
Antonelli’s pole in the Sprint meant that he broke a record that was last set by Sebastian Vettel 16 years ago in 2008.
The Italian is the youngest-ever driver to claim a pole position in F1 for any of the qualifying formats over the years.
| Driver | Age | Race |
| Andrea Kimi Antonelli | 18 years, 8 months, 7 days | 2025 Miami GP Sprint |
| Sebastian Vettel | 21 years, 2 months, 11 days | 2008 Italian GP |
| Charles Leclerc | 21 years, 5 months, 15 days | 2019 Bahrain GP |
| Fernando Alonso | 21 years, 7 months, 22 days | 2003 Malaysian GP |
| Max Verstappen | 21 years, 10 months, 5 days | 2019 Hungarian GP |
Vettel was 21 years old when he earned pole for the 2008 Italian Grand Prix, with Charles Leclerc third on the list, having also earned his first pole at the 2019 Bahrain GP at 21 years old.
The Mercedes driver will surely add to his record tally, having done so at the Japanese GP earlier this year when Antonelli overtook Max Verstappen as F1’s youngest race leader.
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