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Kimi Antonelli turned the tide in a battle of the generations with Lewis Hamilton when he claimed a maiden sprint race win and then also pole position for the British Formula One Grand Prix.
Seven-time world champion and nine-time Silverstone winner Hamilton, 41, had topped practice and sprint qualifying on Friday but his 19-year-old rival hit back on Saturday.
The Mercedes driver overtook ferrari's Hamilton with ease halfway through the 17 laps in the third of six sprints over the season. Reigning world champion Lando Norris came third in a McLaren.
"It was a very fun first 10 laps with Lewis, we were both pushing really hard," said Italian Antonelli, who finished 2.7 seconds ahead of Hamilton.
"We can't let our guard lower, Lewis and Ferrari are doing an incredible job. So we need to keep raising the bar and keep improving."
He did exactly that a few hours later in qualifying when he took a fifth season pole in 1 minute 28.111 seconds on the 5.891-kilometre Silverstone circuit ahead of the Ferraris of Charles Leclerc and Hamilton.
Leclerc trailed by .175 of a second and Hamilton by .347.
George Russell, the winner last weekend in Austria, was fourth in the other Mercedes after riding out in a Q1 scare and former champion Max Verstappen was seventh for Red Bull.
Antonelli, 19, complained on team radio that he was out first for the deciding final flying lap which he later said made him "a bit stressed" but he was unstoppable again as team principal Toto Wolff said he was "in a league of his own" in when it mattered.
"The last lap was very tidy. It came altogether. It was very tricky with the wind because it was very gusty and unpredictable," Antonelli said.
"We built our way through qualifying. To bring the pole home is very satisfying.
Leclerc said he was pleased to be on the front row and ahead of team-mate Hamilton in what he named "a step in the right direction after "a tough for weeks".
Hamilton said that Ferrari are "slowly closing the gap" on Mercedes but remained cautious whether he and Leclerc can stop Antonelli from claiming a sixth season victory.
"It's definitely great to have both of us here. Whether or not we can fully keep up with Kimi, we will see but hopefully we can play with the strategy and work as a a team to try to topple them. We will do our best for sure," he said.
Antonelli leads the standings 43 points ahead of twice season winner Russell and 47 ahead of Hamilton, who recently won his first race for Ferrari in Barcelona.
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Seven-time world champion and nine-time Silverstone winner Hamilton, 41, had topped practice and sprint qualifying on Friday but his 19-year-old rival hit back on Saturday.
The Mercedes driver overtook ferrari's Hamilton with ease halfway through the 17 laps in the third of six sprints over the season. Reigning world champion Lando Norris came third in a McLaren.
"It was a very fun first 10 laps with Lewis, we were both pushing really hard," said Italian Antonelli, who finished 2.7 seconds ahead of Hamilton.
"We can't let our guard lower, Lewis and Ferrari are doing an incredible job. So we need to keep raising the bar and keep improving."
He did exactly that a few hours later in qualifying when he took a fifth season pole in 1 minute 28.111 seconds on the 5.891-kilometre Silverstone circuit ahead of the Ferraris of Charles Leclerc and Hamilton.
Leclerc trailed by .175 of a second and Hamilton by .347.
George Russell, the winner last weekend in Austria, was fourth in the other Mercedes after riding out in a Q1 scare and former champion Max Verstappen was seventh for Red Bull.
Antonelli, 19, complained on team radio that he was out first for the deciding final flying lap which he later said made him "a bit stressed" but he was unstoppable again as team principal Toto Wolff said he was "in a league of his own" in when it mattered.
"The last lap was very tidy. It came altogether. It was very tricky with the wind because it was very gusty and unpredictable," Antonelli said.
"We built our way through qualifying. To bring the pole home is very satisfying.
Leclerc said he was pleased to be on the front row and ahead of team-mate Hamilton in what he named "a step in the right direction after "a tough for weeks".
Hamilton said that Ferrari are "slowly closing the gap" on Mercedes but remained cautious whether he and Leclerc can stop Antonelli from claiming a sixth season victory.
"It's definitely great to have both of us here. Whether or not we can fully keep up with Kimi, we will see but hopefully we can play with the strategy and work as a a team to try to topple them. We will do our best for sure," he said.
Antonelli leads the standings 43 points ahead of twice season winner Russell and 47 ahead of Hamilton, who recently won his first race for Ferrari in Barcelona.
Continue reading...
