Kimi Antonelli made history in China, taking pole for the Chinese Grand Prix with a 1m32.064s to become the youngest pole sitter in Formula 1 history, leading a Mercedes front row ahead of teammate George Russell.

Russell recovered from mechanical issues in Q3 to secure second in the closing moments, 0.222s behind Antonelli, while Lewis Hamilton was third for Ferrari ahead of teammate Charles Leclerc.

The McLaren pair of Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris qualified fifth and sixth respectively, with Pierre Gasly seventh for Alpine ahead of the Red Bull duo of Max Verstappen and Isack Hadjar.

Oliver Bearman rounded out the top 10 for Haas, while Nico Hulkenberg, Franco Colapinto, Esteban Ocon, Liam Lawson and Arvid Lindblad were eliminated in Q2 following a late spin for Gabriel Bortoleto that triggered double yellow flags.

Both Williams drivers exited in Q1, with Carlos Sainz 17th and Alex Albon 18th, while Fernando Alonso, Valtteri Bottas, Lance Stroll and Sergio Perez also failed to progress.

The Chinese Grand Prix at the Shanghai International Circuit gets underway at 3pm local time on Sunday (6pm AEDT).

Results: Formula 1 Chinese Grand Prix, Qualifying

Pos. No. Driver Team Q1 Q2 Q3 Laps
1 12 Kimi Antonelli Mercedes 1:33.305 1:32.443 1:32.064 15
2 63 George Russell Mercedes 1:33.262 1:32.523 1:32.286 13
3 44 Lewis Hamilton Ferrari 1:33.522 1:32.567 1:32.415 19
4 16 Charles Leclerc Ferrari 1:33.175 1:32.486 1:32.428 20
5 81 Oscar Piastri McLaren 1:33.590 1:33.130 1:32.550 20
6 1 Lando Norris McLaren 1:33.535 1:32.910 1:32.608 20
7 10 Pierre Gasly Alpine 1:33.788 1:33.003 1:32.873 21
8 3 Max Verstappen Red Bull Racing 1:33.417 1:33.098 1:33.002 20
9 6 Isack Hadjar Red Bull Racing 1:33.632 1:33.352 1:33.121 20
10 87 Oliver Bearman Haas F1 Team 1:33.687 1:33.197 1:33.292 19
11 27 Nico Hulkenberg Audi 1:34.116 1:33.354 12
12 43 Franco Colapinto Alpine 1:33.634 1:33.357 15
13 31 Esteban Ocon Haas F1 Team 1:33.974 1:33.538 14
14 30 Liam Lawson Racing Bulls 1:34.139 1:33.765 15
15 41 Arvid Lindblad Racing Bulls 1:33.906 1:33.784 15
16 5 Gabriel Bortoleto Audi 1:33.549 1:33.965 14
17 55 Carlos Sainz Williams 1:34.317 10
18 23 Alexander Albon Williams 1:34.772 10
19 14 Fernando Alonso Aston Martin 1:35.203 9
20 77 Valtteri Bottas Cadillac 1:35.436 9
21 18 Lance Stroll Aston Martin 1:35.995 9
22 11 Sergio Perez Cadillac 1:36.906 6