Teenager Kimi Antonelli sprung the surprise of the season so far by taking pole position for Saturday’s sprint race in Miami.

The 18-year-old Italian, just six rounds into his rookie campaign as a replacement for Lewis Hamilton, saw off championship leader Oscar Piastri by just 0.045 seconds at the Hard Rock Stadium.

Piastri’s McLaren team-mate Lando Norris finished third, 0.100 sec behind Antonelli, with Max Verstappen fourth and Antonelli’s Mercedes team-mate George Russell in fifth.

Charles Leclerc and Hamilton qualified sixth and seventh respectively for Ferrari.

“It was a very intense qualifying, and I have felt really good since this morning’s practice session,” said a euphoric Antonelli after posting a track record to take top spot.

“The last lap was mighty. I pulled it all together and I am delighted to get my first pole.

“It will be a different feeling to start on the front row tomorrow and I cannot wait to see how we do in the sprint race, and in qualifying for the Grand Prix, too.”

Antonelli has quietly impressed since filling Hamilton’s cockpit at Mercedes, but few were expecting him to land pole for Saturday’s 19-lap dash to the chequered flag.

Antonelli, who was born five years after double world champion Fernando Alonso, who qualified 10th here, became the youngest F1 driver to take a pole position – albeit it only for a sprint, rather than Sunday’s blue-riband event.

Norris admitted he needs to kick his stuttering championship challenge into gear. However, he will again start behind Piastri for the sprint round where points are awarded for the top eight finishers.

Verstappen was back in his Red Bull cockpit for the first time as a father after he announced the birth of his first child, Lily, with his girlfriend Kelly Piquet.

He will start from fourth position, with Russell one place back and three tenths adrift of team-mate Antonelli after he elected to complete his single lap early on in Q3.

Hamilton has described his start to life at Ferrari as “painful” and he was again unable to match Leclerc’s pace, starting one spot behind the Monegasque.

British rookie Ollie Bearman crashed out of practice and then finished last, two places behind Red Bull’s Yuki Tsunoda who was eliminated in Q1.

The Miami GP is the first of three races to take place in the United States this season, with rounds to follow in Austin and Las Vegas later in the year.

And it was announced in the moments prior to practice that a new deal has been rubber-stamped to see the fixture remain on the calendar until 2041.