Mercedes young driver Kimi Antonelli made history in Formula 1 after becoming the youngest pole sitter in history after an impressive performance in the qualifying session for the Chinese Grand Prix.
The Italian racer recorded the fastest time of 1 minute 32.064 seconds, 0.222 seconds ahead of his teammate, George Russell, who had to be satisfied with starting the race from second position.
This result saw Antonelli break the previous record held by Sebastian Vettel, who achieved pole position at the 2008 Italian Grand Prix at the age of 21 years and 73 days. Antonelli set that record at the age of 19 years, six months, and 17 days.
"I feel really happy. It was a good session and a good way to end the day after a pretty tough sprint," Antonelli said, as quoted on the official Formula 1.
Despite achieving a historic milestone, Antonelli emphasized that his focus is now on the main race, given the huge opportunity that opens up for him to achieve maximum results.
"Of course there's a lot of enthusiasm, but my focus is on tomorrow's race because there's a big opportunity, and I want to maximize it," he said.
