All articles tagged with #pole position
Alex Palou grabbed pole for Sunday’s Freedom 250 in Washington, D.C., blazing a 56.8993s lap in the Fast Six to beat Kyle Kirkwood by 0.5668s on the 1.7-mile, seven-turn temporary street circuit; it’s Palou’s seventh pole of 2026, with McLaughlin third as qualifying details highlight the Round of 12 and transfer drama.
Lewis Hamilton missed pole by 0.012s to Lando Norris but received a three‑place grid penalty for impeding Oscar Piastri, dropping him to fifth on the Hungarian GP starting grid; he vented that it is 'extremely frustrating' on social media, yet remains hopeful the pace can still yield a strong race.
Qualifying for the 2026 F1 Hungarian Grand Prix at the Hungaroring starts today at 16:00 local time in Budapest (15:00 BST), with the usual three-session format to set the grid for round 11. Mercedes are hoping to extend their early-season pole run as George Russell and Kimi Antonelli chase an 11th straight pole, and the piece lists the day’s practice slots and Sunday’s 13:00–15:00 race window.
Kimi Antonelli took pole for Mercedes in the Belgian Grand Prix at Spa, beating Max Verstappen by 0.317 seconds as Mercedes locked out the front row; Lando Norris qualified third but will start 12th after penalties, with George Russell moving to the second row alongside Leclerc; Verstappen benefited from a tow in Q3 thanks to Isack Hadjar, and a gravel incident triggered a red flag during the session.
Kimi Antonelli claimed pole for the British Grand Prix at Silverstone, his fifth pole of the season, beating Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton after a tight qualifying session; he had already won the 17-lap Sprint race earlier in the weekend, having dispatched Hamilton, with Leclerc joining him on the front row in second and third respectively.
Pole-sitter Kimi Antonelli leads the British Grand Prix 2026 at Silverstone after beating Leclerc, with Hamilton and Russell behind on the front row. The event set a record crowd of 564,000 across four days, and Antonelli currently chairs the Drivers’ Championship by 43 points over Russell. The main race starts at 15:00 BST, with dry, warm conditions forecast. The weekend has also featured a Red Bull/Alpine mix of qualifying drama (Hadjar over Verstappen; Gasly penalties) and fan anticipation grows around the youngest-ever Silverstone winner potential for Antonelli.
Mercedes rookie Kimi Antonelli took pole for the British Grand Prix at Silverstone, beating Charles Leclerc by 0.175s with Lewis Hamilton third and George Russell fourth after Russell’s early crash in Q1. Isack Hadjar was fifth, followed by Max Verstappen, Lando Norris, Oscar Piastri, Arvid Lindblad and Liam Lawson in the top 10. Antonelli, who won the sprint earlier on Saturday, tightens the championship picture as Russell bids for his home win.
George Russell clinched pole for the Austrian Grand Prix after Max Verstappen crashed at turn nine; Russell lifted off under yellow flags and still topped the times, with Leclerc and Hamilton behind him. Verstappen starts fifth, while Norris and Piastri are sixth and seventh. Antonelli finished fourth after aborting his lap due to suspected double yellows.
George Russell claimed pole for the Austrian Grand Prix after lifting off at Turn 9 due to a local yellow from Verstappen’s crash; FIA stewards reviewed the lap and concluded he had reduced speed sufficiently during a single yellow, so no investigation or penalty was needed. Russell’s 1:06.113 beat Leclerc and Hamilton, with teammate Kimi Antonelli aborting a lap after mistaking a single yellow for a double. Toto Wolff praised the lap, as Russell seeks to close a 50-point gap to leader Antonelli.
George Russell claimed pole for the Austrian Grand Prix after lifting off under yellow flags caused by Max Verstappen’s crash, avoiding a penalty; Leclerc starts second, Hamilton third, Antonelli fourth, with Verstappen dropping to fifth following the incident.
Shane van Gisbergen earned the pole for NASCAR Cup San Diego on the all-new 3.4-mile street course at Naval Base Coronado, edging Carson Hocevar in a razor-thin margin as Ryan Blaney, Zane Smith and Todd Gilliland completed the top five. Kevin Magnussen qualified 21st for his Cup debut, while championship leader Tyler Reddick spun but still started 17th, with several big-name drivers further back in the field.
Shane van Gisbergen grabbed the inaugural NASCAR Cup Series pole for the Anduril 250 at Naval Base Coronado, clocking 90.809 mph on the 3.4-mile, 16-turn street course. The Trackhouse driver will lead the field on the front row with Carson Hocevar, marking his sixth Cup pole and sixth road-course pole as NASCAR ventures onto the base for a historic race, with tire wear and strategy likely to shape Sunday's event.
Alex Palou claimed his sixth IndyCar pole of the season and fifth in a row at Road America for the XPEL Grand Prix, a feat not achieved in a single season since Danny Sullivan in 1988, after a 1:43.6615 lap. Malukas finished second, with Armstrong third and Rosenqvist fourth as the field navigated the qualifying groups and late runs.
Denny Hamlin captured pole for the NASCAR Cup race at Pocono with a 51.948-second lap—the only sub-52-second time—smoking the field by a tenth to earn front-row start alongside Kyle Larson; Daniel Suárez, Ty Gibbs and Chase Briscoe fill the rest of the top five. Bubba Wallace and Carson Hocevar spun in Q2 and will start at the rear, with championship leader Tyler Reddick 16th and Christopher Bell 22nd as the start time was moved up two hours due to rain.
Denny Hamlin captured the Busch Light Pole at Pocono Raceway for the Great American Getaway 400, posting a 173.250 mph lap to edge Kyle Larson by 0.057 seconds and claim his fourth pole of the 2026 season (51st Cup pole). Hamlin, riding a hot streak with wins in Nashville and Michigan and an All-Star Race victory, will lead the field Sunday as Larson is second, followed by Daniel Suárez, Ty Gibbs, Chase Briscoe, Chris Buescher, Erik Jones, John Hunter Nemechek, William Byron and Ryan Blaney in the top 10. 23XI Racing’s Tyler Reddick starts 15th and Bubba Wallace will roll off rear after an accident; the start time for the race was moved up to 1 p.m. ET due to weather.