Wolff hails 'calm' Antonelli after Italian seals second consectuvie pole in Japan

[p]The 19-year-old set the fastest time of 01:28.778 seconds on his first attempt ‌in the final shootout phase of qualifying.[/p][p]A lock-up on ‌his second attempt prevented him from going even ‌faster, but it did not matter, with his initial effort good enough to beat second-placed Mercedes teammate [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/russell-george/xxF56RaN/"]George ‌Russell[/a] by a handy 0.298 seconds.[/p][p][b]"Putting ⁠that one lap ‌in that was very good - Bono ([a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/antonelli-andrea-kimi/ptGu0mT1/"]Antonelli[/a]'s engineer Peter Bonnington) told him to put a banker in,"[/b] Mercedes team chief Toto Wolff ​told Sky Sports.[/p][p][b]"And then he pushed it a little bit hard on the last one, and it wasn't ⁠so good, but ​it's really pleasing to see,"[/b] he added.[/p][p]Drivers typically put in two fast laps when battling for pole.[/p][p]The first is usually treated as a "banker" attempt, aimed ‌at getting a lap time on the board during which drivers tend to play it slightly safe before putting it all on the line in a high-risk last-gasp blast for top spot.[/p][p]For Antonelli, playing it safe paid off.[/p][p]He heads into the weekend fired up from having ‌secured his first pole and victory two weeks ​ago in China as he bids for a ‌first win at Suzuka, an old-school layout renowned as one of the great drivers' tracks.[/p][p][b]"When you hear his radio communications, also on the intercom in the garage, it's just calm,"[/b] ⁠Wolff added.[/p][p][b]"Not putting ⁠himself too much ‌under pressure."[/b][/p]