Russell roars to Dutch GP sprint pole, Antonelli fifth

AFP | Zandvoort

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Mercedes driver George Russell clinched pole position for Saturday's sprint race at the Dutch Grand Prix, setting the fastest qualifying lap time ahead of current world champion Lando Norris.

Ferrari's Charles Leclerc will be third on the grid ahead of Oscar Piastri in the second McLaren.

Current world championship leader Kimi Antonelli was a surprisingly low fifth in qualifying after setting the fastest time in practice in his Mercedes.

Back for the first race after the traditional month-long summer break, Russell set a time of one minute and 11.567 seconds, 0.041 seconds faster than Leclerc, ahead of what looks like being a knife-edge battle all weekend between the top teams.

"The lap felt really good, to be honest. It all came together nicely," said Russell.

"I'm really happy to come back. It's been a little while since I've done one of these interviews," added Russell, who won the first Grand Prix of the season but has since fallen off the pace.

Home favourite Max Verstappen, roared on by an army of orange-clad fans, qualified in sixth in his Red Bull.

After rain early in the morning, the track had dried out, but Antonelli appeared to have grip issues, spinning in the first qualifying session.

'Special send off'

Earlier yesterday, Antonelli had laid down the gauntlet to the other teams, turning in the fastest lap in testing conditions at the only practice session.

The Dutch Grand Prix, coming a month after the last race in Hungary, comes with every sign the championship could go down to the wire in the second half of the season.

Antonelli, who turns 20 next week, has a 50-point advantage over seven-time world champion Hamilton, at 41 more than twice his age.

Antonelli and Mercedes dominated the first half of the season, with the prodigy picking up wins in six of the 11 races, including five consecutive chequered flags.