Oscar Piastri Claims Pole Position at Imola

Oscar Piastri edges Max Verstappen for Imola pole position in thrilling qualifying session. Ferrari faces disappointment as Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton struggle.

Oscar Piastri held his nerve under pressure to claim pole position for the Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix, with Max Verstappen joining him on the front row. Meanwhile, George Russell secured third place for Mercedes, and Lando Norris qualified fourth for McLaren.

The qualifying session was marked by two red flags after crashes involving Yuki Tsunoda of Red Bull and Franco Colapinto of Alpine during the first phase. Despite the interruptions, Piastri maintained his composure to top the qualifying charts.

Ferrari faced a tough qualifying session in front of their home crowd, with Charles Leclerc finishing 11th and Lewis Hamilton 12th. This marked a disappointing start for Hamilton's first Italian Grand Prix with the team.

OSCAR PIASTRI TAKES POLE AT IMOLA!!! 💪#F1 #ImolaGP pic.twitter.com/07Ky3w7FJb

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Oscar Piastri secured his third pole position of the season with a lap time of 1:14.670 minutes. The 24-year-old now chases his fifth win in seven races and fourth consecutive victory, which would further extend his lead over Lando Norris to 16 points.

Piastri described the qualifying session as “very tough” due to delays and red flags. Despite the challenges, he was pleased with his performance. “The lap was good. I had about four cars in the last corner, which didn’t help, but it was enough. So, very happy with the job I’ve done and excited for tomorrow.”

Max Verstappen had initially set the pace with a time of 1:14.772, but Piastri managed to edge him out by a mere 0.102 seconds to claim pole position, showcasing his skill under pressure.

Max Verstappen, the winner of the past three races at Imola, improved his time but fell short of beating Piastri's final effort, ending 0.034 seconds behind. Verstappen reflected on the challenge of the Pirelli tyres, saying, “Everything was going really well, just this softest compound is very difficult to keep alive around the lap. Sector one was good and then the tyres again fell away from me from there onwards by tiny margins.”

George Russell achieved his time using the medium tyres. He expressed surprise at being competitive with McLaren, saying, “It’s always a surprise when you’re so close to the McLaren because they’re so quick at the moment.”

Ferrari's hopes of challenging McLaren never materialized, leaving the team frustrated. Charles Leclerc exclaimed over the team radio, “My God, my God,” as he realized the team's performance wasn't enough. Lewis Hamilton echoed the sentiment, saying, “Definitely devastated and gutted because the car was genuinely feeling pretty good. I felt like the car setup was right and we just can't go quick enough.”

George Russell's team struggled with tyre performance. “We threw the soft (tyre) on at the end and for some reason it just did not come alive, there was no grip.”

OSCAR PIASTRI POLE POSITION IN IMOLA 🇮🇹 pic.twitter.com/dgxbdqsZ5N

— ESPN F1 (@ESPNF1) May 17, 2025

Meanwhile, Mercedes' Italian rookie Kimi Antonelli had a disappointing qualifying session, failing to make the top 10 and starting 13th. In contrast, Fernando Alonso impressed for Aston Martin, qualifying fifth - a significant turnaround for the team and the former Imola winner who has yet to score points in 2025.

The Williams duo of Carlos Sainz and Alex Albon secured sixth and seventh places, showcasing their strong performance. Meanwhile, Lance Stroll's eighth-place finish marked another promising result for Aston Martin's upgraded car, with teammate Fernando Alonso already impressing in fifth.

Isack Hadjar from Racing Bulls and Pierre Gasly from Alpine rounded out the top 10, with ninth and tenth positions respectively.

Yuki Tsunoda and Franco Colapinto both crashed during qualifying and were taken to the medical center for precautionary checks. Colapinto had returned to the grid, replacing Jack Doohan, and was back in action after a stint with Williams last year.

The crashes caused significant disruptions, with Tsunoda's incident prompting a 15-minute delay for track repairs. Colapinto's crash later triggered another red flag after he lost control approaching Tamburello, hitting the barrier head-on.