The 2026 Formula 1 season continues to highlight the critical head-to-head qualifying battles between teammates. These internal contests serve as a direct measure of outright pace, with drivers competing in identical machinery. The current season, well underway by July 18, 2026, has seen several close duels across the grid.
At Mercedes, Kimi Antonelli currently holds a 7-6 advantage over George Russell in Grand Prix qualifying sessions. Antonelli also leads Russell 2-2 in Sprint qualifying sessions, with an average time difference of 0.080s in Antonelli’s favour. Antonelli secured pole position for the British Grand Prix at Silverstone on July 4, 2026, beating Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton. He also won the Sprint Race earlier that day.
Russell had previously taken pole at the Austrian Grand Prix on June 27, 2026, where he levelled the Grand Prix qualifying head-to-head with Antonelli to 4-4 for the season. Russell’s pole in Austria was his fourth of the season. Antonelli had also claimed pole position for the Japanese Grand Prix on March 28, 2026, ahead of Russell.
McLaren’s Lando Norris leads Oscar Piastri 9-4 in Grand Prix qualifying sessions this season. Norris also holds a 4-0 lead in Sprint qualifying. The average gap between them is 0.033s in Norris’s favour. At the British Grand Prix, Norris qualified P6, ahead of Piastri in P8. Piastri had an early season lead, but Norris has since brought the battle back to parity.
Red Bull’s Max Verstappen maintains a significant lead over Isack Hadjar, with a 10-3 record in Grand Prix qualifying and a 4-0 lead in Sprint qualifying. Verstappen holds an average advantage of 0.241s. However, Hadjar outqualified Verstappen at the British Grand Prix, securing P5 to Verstappen’s P7. Verstappen also had a Q2 exit at the Japanese Grand Prix, qualifying P11, while Hadjar made Q3 in P8. Verstappen described his car as ‘undrivable’ during that session.
At Ferrari, Charles Leclerc leads Lewis Hamilton 7-6 in Grand Prix qualifying sessions, with an average time difference of 0.011s in Leclerc’s favour. Hamilton secured P3 at the British Grand Prix, behind Leclerc in P2. Hamilton’s P2 at the Barcelona Grand Prix on June 13, 2026, marked his best qualifying performance of the season, while Leclerc crashed in Q3.
Williams sees Carlos Sainz leading Alex Albon 10-1 in Grand Prix qualifying, with Sainz holding an average advantage of 0.345s. Sainz qualified P15 at the British Grand Prix, ahead of Albon in P16. At the Austrian Grand Prix, both Williams drivers were eliminated in Q1.
Liam Lawson leads rookie Arvid Lindblad 8-4 in Grand Prix qualifying at Racing Bulls, with an average gap of 0.196s in Lawson’s favour. Lindblad, however, qualified P9 at the British Grand Prix, ahead of Lawson in P10. Lindblad also made a Q3 appearance at the Japanese Grand Prix, qualifying P10 and notably ahead of Max Verstappen.
Fernando Alonso holds a 7-2 lead over Lance Stroll in Grand Prix qualifying at Aston Martin, with an average advantage of 0.380s. Stroll outqualified Alonso at the Barcelona Grand Prix, marking his first such achievement since the 2024 British Grand Prix. Stroll also outqualified Alonso at Silverstone, though Alonso incurred a grid penalty.
Haas driver Oliver Bearman leads Esteban Ocon 7-2 in Grand Prix qualifying, with Bearman holding an average advantage of 0.195s. Bearman qualified P14 at the British Grand Prix, while Ocon was eliminated in Q1. At Audi, Nico Hulkenberg leads Gabriel Bortoleto 5-4 in Grand Prix qualifying. Bortoleto qualified P12 at the British Grand Prix, ahead of Hulkenberg in P13.
Alpine’s Pierre Gasly leads Franco Colapinto 5-4 in Grand Prix qualifying. Colapinto has narrowed the average gap to Gasly this season. At the British Grand Prix, Gasly qualified P11, with Colapinto in P12. Cadillac, making their debut this season, sees Sergio Perez leading Valtteri Bottas 3-0 in Grand Prix qualifying. Both drivers bring significant experience to the new team.
