Ferrari stumbles

Who will race to pole position at Silverstone?

George Russell celebrates pole position.

(Bild: APA/ERWIN SCHERIAU)

Mercedes driver George Russell has secured pole position for the British Grand Prix at Silverstone on Sunday. Team-mate Lewis Hamilton finished behind him. There were difficulties for both Red Bull and Ferrari in qualifying on Saturday. Charles Leclerc only finished in eleventh place. Max Verstappen in turn started from fourth position. 

Mercedes secured the front row of the grid for the British Grand Prix. In a thrilling Formula 1 qualifying session on a drying track at Silverstone, Spielberg winner George Russell took pole position on Saturday ahead of Lewis Hamilton and McLaren driver Lando Norris. Red Bull world champion Max Verstappen had to settle for fourth place on the grid for Sunday's Grand Prix (4pm) after a spin and damaged underbody.

Setback for Perez
Sergio Perez, on the other hand, suffered another setback. The Red Bull driver crashed on a wet surface, got stuck in the gravel and will therefore only start from 19th on the grid. It was the third time this season that the Mexican got stuck in the first qualifying section, having improved from 15th on the grid to sixth last year at Silverstone. A short time later, Verstappen and Haas driver Kevin Magnussen also made an excursion into the gravel in the same corner as the rain set in, with the championship leader suffering damage to his underbody.

Perez, who has not finished higher than seventh and two eighth places in the last five races, is currently in the crossfire of criticism. The 34-year-old world championship runner-up was allowed to extend his contract with the Austro racing team a month ago despite fluctuations in performance, but has not been able to meet expectations since then. "Sergio's poor performances open the window for us," said McLaren team boss Zak Brown when asked about the constructors' championship. However, Red Bull Racing currently still has a comfortable lead after Perez also made it onto the podium four times in the first five races of the season.

Reconciliation between Norris and Verstappen
In the championship standings, Verstappen leads Norris by 81 points ahead of the twelfth of 24 races. Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc, who was only eleventh in qualifying, is 87 points behind. The two good friends Verstappen and Norris reconciled after the collision in Spielberg, when Norris had to retire early from the Austrian Grand Prix with victory in sight after a hard Verstappen maneuver.

Here is the standings in the drivers' world championship:

In Formula 2, meanwhile, super talent Andrea Kimi Antonelli celebrated his first triumph. The 17-year-old Italian won the rainy Silverstone sprint from pole position with a clear lead, after things had not gone according to plan for the Mercedes junior in the previous races. "That's good for him. He drove a second faster than those behind him. It's also important that this victory has now happened. It has confirmed that he is in a league of his own in these conditions. But he's not a world champion yet, that will take time," said Mercedes boss Toto Wolff on ORF about the candidate for the second "Silver Arrow" cockpit in 2025 alongside Russell.