Antonelli takes pole in Austin as Ferrari fade in United States Grand Prix qualifying
NXTbets Pro | Published On: October 25, 2026
Antonelli takes pole
Kimi Antonelli took pole position for the United States Grand Prix in Austin. Max Verstappen will line up alongside him after Antonelli edged the driver in qualifying, a sharp turn after Ferrari had controlled the opening sessions of the weekend. Ferrari topped all three practice sessions before qualifying and arrived on the front foot, but Antonelli delivered when it mattered most. He put together the fastest lap in the decisive session and left the field chasing, with Verstappen next on the grid and the rest of the front runners left to regroup for race day.
The result mattered because it changed the shape of the front of the field after Ferrari had looked like the team to beat through practice. Their early pace suggested a stronger qualifying run was there for the taking. Instead, Antonelli seized pole and Red Bull kept itself in the fight through Verstappen, while Ferrari could not convert its practice form into the session that set the grid. That left the Italian team with more questions than answers after a weekend that had started with promise. Qualifying exposed the gap between practice speed and the demands of a single-lap shootout, and Antonelli made the most of it.
Ferrari fades
Charles Leclerc qualified fourth and Lewis Hamilton fifth at Circuit of the Americas, a finish that fell short of what Ferrari had shown in practice. The team had led all three sessions before qualifying, but that speed did not carry over when the pressure rose. Leclerc said the result was very disappointing because tire preparation and cooler track temperatures left the car out of its optimal window. That left Ferrari without the grip it wanted at the right time, and it showed in the final order. Hamilton also said Ferrari lost time on the straights, especially to Mercedes and Red Bull, a problem that blunted any chance of climbing higher when the stopwatch mattered most.
The numbers on the grid told the story. Ferrari had the pace to threaten the front, but qualifying placed its two drivers behind Antonelli and behind both Red Bulls. That was a hard outcome to absorb after a weekend that began with such control in practice. The team entered qualifying with clear momentum and left with both cars outside the front row. Leclerc and Hamilton could only watch the opportunity slip away as Mercedes and Red Bull found the speed Ferrari could not match when the session turned decisive. The weekend shifted from one of Ferrari strength to one of recovery.
Ferrari looks for answers
Frederic Vasseur said Ferrari had the pace to fight for pole or at least the front row, which made the final result sting all the more. That assessment matched the shape of the weekend. Ferrari showed enough speed in practice to suggest a front-row challenge, then lost the window it needed once the cooler conditions and tire preparation issues came into play. The team did not lack outright promise. It lacked the window to use it when the order mattered. That gap between expectation and outcome defined the qualifying session for Ferrari, and it put the focus on execution as much as pace.
Hamilton’s remarks added another layer to the picture. He pointed to straight-line time as a major loss, especially against Mercedes and Red Bull, and said Ferrari could have reached the front row with equal power. That was a blunt way to describe a session that left the team frustrated. The car’s weaknesses surfaced at the wrong time, and the final grid reflected it. Leclerc’s fourth-place effort and Hamilton’s fifth-place run kept Ferrari close, but close was not enough after the team had spent the day looking faster in practice. Antonelli took pole. Verstappen lined up second. Ferrari had the weekend in hand early, then lost it when qualifying arrived.
