Lewis Hamilton takes British GP Sprint pole ahead of Kimi Antonelli as George Russell struggles

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Ferrari’s Lewis Hamilton secured pole position for the British Grand Prix Sprint race at Silverstone, marking his second front-of-the-pack start in the shorter format race for the Scuderia.

Lewis Hamilton claimed the top spot in the crucial FP1 session on Friday morning, putting two tenths over Kimi Antonelli in P2 and six tenths over Ferrari teammate Charles Leclerc in third.

Who will be Lewis Hamilton’s biggest competition for the British GP Sprint race win?

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The first day of the proceedings at the iconic Silverstone Circuit took place in scorching conditions, with track temperatures reaching 43 degrees Celsius ahead of the Sprint shootout that took place in the afternoon.

• READ MORE: Lewis Hamilton tops FP1 at the British Grand Prix ahead of Kimi Antonelli and Charles Leclerc

Lewis Hamilton secures pole position for the British Grand Prix Sprint race

Following the first round of laps in SQ1, it was Red Bull’s Isack Hadjar who held the benchmark as he managed to record a time just over one tenth quicker than home hero Lewis Hamilton. The Briton wasted no time in snatching the top spot with his second attempt.

The first 12 minutes of Sprint qualifying saw all of the drivers from Aston Martin, Cadillac and Haas exit the shootout, respectively, while the 10-time British Grand Prix winner, Hamilton, ended the session on top ahead of Leclerc.

Lando Norris’ qualifying session was hindered by a small component of his front-left brake duct seemingly falling off his MCL40. McLaren was unable to replace the crucial part, hamstringing the reigning world champion for SQ2 and SQ3.

George Russell looked to be in danger following his first flying lap in SQ2, crossing the start/finish line with a lap time that was some seven tenths slower than Hamilton, who claimed the top spot after the first round of laps yet again.

The Mercedes star managed to set a more comfortable lap time to secure his spot in SQ3 as Williams, Audi and Alpine saw all of their drivers miss out on the final eight minutes of Sprint qualifying.

With the entire top 10 remaining in their garage as the timer in SQ3 started to tick down, it became clear that each driver would be banking on just one flying lap to score a coveted pole position for the British Grand Prix Sprint.

As the chequered flag flew, Hamilton claimed his throne as he usurped Antonelli’s provisional pole lap time to secure his second pole position in the shorter format race for Ferrari. Max Verstappen rounded out the top three, with Leclerc in P4.

• READ MORE: British Grand Prix 2026: How to watch, F1 race and Sprint times, and Silverstone weather forecast

Full 2026 F1 British Grand Prix Sprint qualifying results