Wolff heralds Antonelli speed as teen joins Senna and Schumacher in record books

Mercedes' Italian teen driver Kimi Antonelli waves after winning the pole position during the qualifying session for the 2026 Miami Formula One Grand Prix (CHARLY TRIBALLEAU)

(CHARLY TRIBALLEAU/AFP/AFP)

Mercedes team chief Toto Wolff heralded Kimi Antonelli’s emergence on Saturday after the Italian teen stunned rivals with a dazzling lap to capture pole position for Sunday’s Miami Grand Prix.

The 19-year-old Italian, the youngest championship leader in F1 history, clocked a time of one minute and 27.798 seconds with his first lap in Q3 to jump four-tenths clear of his competitors and, effectively, take pole without needing an improved second lap.

"That first lap, it was really special," Wolff said. "He was three or more tenths ahead of the next car... but then we were having over-confidence and over-pushing it, but that's how he is."

Wolff, who has overseen Antonelli's rise from prodigy to pace-setter, made clear the Italian’s youth and inexperience still needed to be taken into consideration, but said he felt he was no longer prone to mistakes.

"It's an improvement because in the past he would have ended up in the wall, but now it's just a missed lap –- now he's showing his speed, which is really nice to see.

"Trusting in Kimi... you can look like a fool or you can look great. Our junior programme is doing a diligent job and you can look at his trajectory and you see the pace and speed.

"It just needed development, which we gave him last year, when he made his mistakes. Now, there is more to come, but I think he has good speed and character traits."

Antonelli joined an elite club when he took his third career pole in consecutive races -- a feat achieved previously by multiple champions Ayrton Senna and Michael Schumacher.

Asked about joining such elite company, the curly-haired Italian smiled modestly and said it was "very nice" but spoke more about the challenge of driving in the heat at the Miami International Autodrome.

"It was very hot and it wasn't easy," he said. "The track is slippery and it's not easy to put the sectors together, but I'm happy with the lap and feel there's more on the table."