All articles tagged with #qualifying
Kimi Antonelli clinched pole for the Japanese Grand Prix at Suzuka, beating Mercedes teammate George Russell by 0.298s after leading most of qualifying; Verstappen was eliminated in Q2 and starts 11th, with Piastri and Leclerc on the second row, Norris and Hamilton behind, and Gasly, Hadjar, Bortoleto and Lindblad completing the top 10.
Kimi Antonelli took pole for the 2026 F1 Japanese Grand Prix at Suzuka with a 1:28.778, delivering Mercedes a one-two alongside George Russell. Oscar Piastri qualified third, Charles Leclerc fourth, Lando Norris fifth and Lewis Hamilton sixth, while reigning champion Max Verstappen was eliminated in Q2 and starts 11th on the grid.
Kimi Antonelli claimed pole at Suzuka with a 1m28.778s in Q3, narrowly ahead of George Russell after a late setup change left Russell fighting a rear-end balance; Oscar PiastriQualifying third as Charles Leclerc failed to improve on final runs amid gusty winds and cooler track, with resurfacing adding grip variability and renewing calls for early-2026 qualifying tweaks.
Racer X’s Birmingham Race Day Feed covers practice and qualifying for the Monster Energy AMA Supercross round at Protective Stadium. Seth Hammaker posted the fastest time in the 250SX combined qualifying (East/West Showdown), with strong showings from West/East riders, while Eli Tomac posted the fastest time in 450SX Group A and led the 450 combined qualifying. The day also notes the returns of Nick Romano and Justin Bogle, plus SMX Next results ahead of the main events.
Jack Aitken took pole for the Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring in a razor-thin GTP qualifying session, clocking 1:46.153 to beat Tom Blomqvist by 0.109 seconds, with Filipe Albuquerque third, Kevin Estre fourth, and Louis Deletraz fifth on the front row. In LMP2, Misha Goikhberg earned pole while Daniel Goldberg and Jeremy Clarke joined him on the front row after Hyett’s time was erased by a red flag. In GTD Pro, Jack Hawksworth led the field; in GTD, Eduardo Barrichello topped the class ahead of Philip Ellis and Robby Foley. The race starts Saturday at 10:10 a.m. EST with coverage on Peacock and IMSA YouTube.
Antonelli clinched his first F1 pole in Shanghai—the youngest polesitter—after a chaotic sprint and Russell’s gearshift issue, signaling a potential front-row duel; behind him Ferrari and Mercedes showed pace but front-end graining looms, Norris impressed for McLaren, while Red Bull struggles with driveability and tyre wear as Alpine, Haas, and Audi push for a tight midfield battle.
Mercedes topped Melbourne practice and qualifying, with George Russell on pole and an eight‑tenths gap to Red Bull, signaling a powerful early advantage from engine and chassis. Rivals warned the season won’t be decided yet and upgrades plus rule clarifications could narrow the gap, but Mercedes has reignited championship momentum early in 2026.
Max Verstappen crashed on his first qualifying run for the Australian Grand Prix when his Red Bull’s rear locked during a downshift into Turn 1. RacingNews365 technical expert Paolo Filisetti says an ERS software glitch read engine speed incorrectly, triggering a safe mode that locked the rear axle—not a gearbox or brake-by-wire fault—highlighting teething problems with current F1 energy-recovery tech and foreshadowing possible chaos in the race due to energy management.
Melbourne’s Australian GP qualifying offered a cautiously positive start to F1’s 2026 rules, with a more tightly bunched field and Mercedes showing early pace while Ferrari hints at pace to challenge; Red Bull and McLaren faced hiccups but remain in the hunt as teams adapt to new energy-management strategies, and Aston Martin and Cadillac showed both the ongoing struggles and the potential for growth as the season opens.
Tyler Reddick earned the pole for the NASCAR Cup Series at Circuit of the Americas after a two-group qualifying session, posting a 1:37.760, with Ross Chastain second and Chase Briscoe third. The full starting lineup is listed, and Michael McDowell paced Cup practice at COTA, ahead of Ryan Blaney and Connor Zilisch among others.
Live updates from Seattle’s Lumen Field show Haiden Deegan leading 250SX qualifying with a 49.414-second lap (fastest in the first session and overall), while Jorge Prado paces 450SX qualifying in combined times (50.600) with Eli Tomac fastest in the second session (51.032); Hunter Lawrence remains the 450 points leader, RJ Hampshire is out due to illness/foot injury, and the track—built in about 30 hours after stadium scheduling—is fast with some wet low spots, setting the stage for a competitive night of racing and more qualifying results.
American Nishesh Basavareddy rallied from a 7-1 deficit in a 10-point tiebreak to beat Sebastian Ofner 13-11 in Australian Open qualifying, after Ofner celebrated prematurely thinking he’d won; Basavareddy followed with a choke-celebration and advances to the final qualifying round against George Loffhagen.
On Wednesday at Australian Open qualifying, Alexander Blockx, Dino Prizmic, Nicolai Budkov Kjaer and Rafael Jodar won to move within one win of the main draw, with Blockx routing Molcan 6-1, 6-1; Prizmic beating Heide 7-5, 6-2; Budkov Kjaer defeating McCabe 4-6, 6-3, 7-6(6); and Jodar defeating Rodesch 7-6(10), 6-3. Herbert, Wong, Van Assche and Lajovic also advanced to keep their qualification hopes alive.
Max Kennedy failed to secure a LIV Tour spot at the Florida qualifier after a rocky final round that included an early triple-bogey, leaving him in seventh as the top-3 cutoff proved out of reach. Wild-card LIV spots went to Richard Lee, Bjorn Hellgren, and Anthony Kim, with Lee winning at 11-under and Kim staging a notable comeback after years away from the game.
Gus Dean posted the fastest time in Day 1 pre-race practice at Daytona International Speedway for the ARCA Menards Series, with Gavan Boschele and Jake Finch also showing strong performances.