Proud Russell congratulates stunning Antonelli: 'Really impressive drive!'

01:10, 03 May

byKada Sarkozi

For the first time in 2025, George Russell was outqualified by his teammate. Young Kimi Antonelli scored his first ever pole position in Sprint Qualifying. The Briton was happy with his teammate's result in Miami.

Russell could only praise Antonelli after the session. "Massive congrats to Kimi. Really pleased to see. He did an amazing job. He's been really quick all day. Really impressive,” he began to F1 TV.

Russell opted for different strategy

Russell was out early on SQ3, together with Max Verstappen, with only a single soft tyre available to him. While the Dutchman completed another lap, the Mercedes driver returned to the pit lane.

"I've been struggling a little bit today, a little bit off the pace, not been so comfortable. We just wanted to go on the early side because ultimately I didn't quite have that confidence, and we thought maybe if there's a yellow or a red at the end of the session, it will come our way."

He concluded: "P5 today, not great, more to improve, but amazing for Kimi and the team."

The weekend continues with the Sprint and Qualifying on Saturday in Miami.

This article was written in collaboration with Estéban den Toom