Antonelli takes maiden pole position in Madrid

Kimi Antonelli took his first Formula 1 pole position at the inaugural Madrid Grand Prix, beating Charles Leclerc by 0.114 seconds on a circuit where no driver had prior race experience.

Antonelli was quickest in every part of qualifying, a session interrupted twice by drivers finding the limits of the new banked turn 10. "I have been waiting for a weekend where nobody has any data," he said. "It felt like a Sunday morning in karting."

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Mercedes' strongest Saturday of the year

The pole continues a clear upward trend for Mercedes since the Belgian Grand Prix, where the team introduced a revised rear suspension. George Russell qualified fifth, complaining of traffic on his final run.

For Antonelli it is the most convincing weekend of a second season that started badly. He scored four points in the first six rounds; he has scored 78 since.