George Russell secured pole position for the 2026 Austrian Grand Prix after an exciting qualifying session at the Red Bull Ring. The Mercedes driver beat Ferrari duo Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton, while Max Verstappen’s late crash in Q3 prevented several drivers from improving their final lap times.
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Q1: Antonelli Sets the Pace in the first segment
Mercedes looked strong from the beginning of qualifying. Kimi Antonelli topped the opening session with a lap of 1:07.083, finishing almost two tenths ahead of Lando Norris. Lewis Hamilton was over two tenths behind in third.
George Russell’s first flying lap left him only eighth, around half a second off his teammate, but it was still enough to comfortably reach Q2.
Out: Sainz, Albon, Perez, Bottas, Alonso, Stroll
Q2: Antonelli Remains Fast, Verstappen Narrowly Avoids Elimination
Antonelli continued his impressive pace by finishing fastest once again in Q2. Oscar Piastri was 0.127 seconds behind, while Lando Norris followed just 0.134 seconds off the benchmark.
The battle for the final Q3 places was extremely close. Verstappen could have been kicked out by Pierre Gasly, but Gasly missed out by just 0.040 seconds after setting the 11th fastest time.
Out: Gasly, Bortoleto, Bearman, Hulkenberg, Ocon, Colapinto
Q3: Russell Claims Pole After Verstappen Crash
Verstappen was the fastest driver at the beginning of Q3 with a 1:06.475. Oscar Piastri was around two tenths behind, while Charles Leclerc trailed by almost three tenths.
Then Antonelli improved and moved into provisional pole by just 0.061 seconds. Russell then came within 0.043 seconds of his teammate before the final laps.
At the final round of fast laps, Lewis Hamilton completed a strong lap and moved to the top by only six thousandths of a second. Moments later, Charles Leclerc went even faster, beating Hamilton by 0.059 seconds.
The decisive moment came when Verstappen lost control of his Red Bull two corners before the main straight. His crash brought out yellow flags during the closing seconds of qualifying, preventing several drivers from completing their final improvements.
Russell secured pole position ahead of Leclerc and Hamilton. His lap was reviewed after the session because of the yellow flag situation, but it remained valid.
Qualifying summary
Mercedes showed excellent pace throughout qualifying, with Antonelli leading both Q1 and Q2 before Russell delivered the fastest lap when it mattered most. Ferrari also looked highly competitive, placing both cars inside the top three.
The biggest talking point of the session was Verstappen’s late crash, which interrupted the final runs in Q3 and influenced the outcome of the battle for pole position. After a post-session review, Russell kept pole position for Sunday’s Austrian Grand Prix.
The full results of the qualifying according to FIA.com:
