Max Verstappen sends message to Kimi Antonelli after record-breaking Chinese Grand Prix pole

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Max Verstappen has applauded Kimi Antonelli after the Mercedes driver took his first-ever pole position at the Chinese Grand Prix on Saturday. Antonelli becomes the youngest polesitter in the history of Formula 1.

The teenager set the fastest time in Miami Sprint qualifying last year, but this is his first fully-fledged pole. Sebastian Vettel’s record, which stood for 18 years, has finally been beaten.

Antonelli acknowledges that he was somewhat fortunate, with pole favourite George Russell limited to one run in Q3 after an earlier stoppage. But the gap to his teammate, 0.222 seconds, suggests he would have been a strong contender regardless.

Kimi Antonelli is now the youngest polesitter in F1 history

Is this the moment that a future world champion announced himself?

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Max Verstappen leads social media congratulations for Kimi Antonelli

Over at Red Bull, Max Verstappen had another miserable day on Saturday. Having finished ninth in the Sprint – outside the points – he qualified eighth for the main Grand Prix.

Verstappen was a second off pole and once again lost out to midfield driver Pierre Gasly in the Alpine. While he has made his frustration with Red Bull’s performance plain, he put it aside to congratulate Antonelli.

After Mercedes’ Instagram account shared a post showing Antonelli at the top of the youngest polesitters leaderboard, Verstappen sent three applause emojis and commented: “Well done @kimi.antonelli.”

Antonelli built a ‘wonderful relationship’ with Verstappen in 2025, when the latter acted as a ‘mentor’ for the rookie class. He said it was ‘special’ to receive praise from the four-time world champion.

‘He’s got all the wisdom he needs’ – Lewis Hamilton’s praise for Kimi Antonelli

Hamilton enthusiastically embraced Antonelli in parc ferme after qualifying and spoke about the 19-year-old in glowing terms during the FIA press conference.

Like Antonelli, Hamilton made his F1 debut for a top team alongside a star driver. George Russell may not have won world titles like Fernando Alonso, but he appears good enough to do so.

“I don’t know, different scenarios but maybe some similarities,” Hamilton said of the comparison. “I was obviously a rookie against a two-time world champion at the time who’d been in it a long, long, long time.”

• READ MORE: Five things we learned from qualifying for the Chinese GP as Kimi Antonelli scores record pole

Even though it’s just his second season, Hamilton believes that Antonelli has the ‘wisdom’ and perseverance required to succeed. While still searching for his first Grand Prix win, he has scored four podiums so far.

“I don’t think he needs any advice – he’s just qualified pole,” said Hamilton. “So, there’s really nothing I can pass down to him.

“He’s got all the wisdom I think he needs, and I think it’s just important to just enjoy it, you know, and just continue to do what you’re doing, keep your head down and keep pushing and just not give up, which clearly is not the way he works. I’m sure he will do great.”