Kimi Antonelli etched his name into the Formula One record books as world champion and as a deserved and popular winner whose verve and extraordinary skill has been thrilling to watch, turning what many thought might have been an unlikely title tilt into a triumphant march, sealed with tears of joy at the Mexican Grand Prix In taking his debut F1 title for Mercedes, the 20-year-old Antonelli, with his tousled hair and charming boyish looks, is the youngest driver to claim the sport’s crown and the first Italian to do so since Alberto Ascari won in 1953. It is Mercedes’ first drivers’ championship since Hamilton last won in 2020 and the team’s 10th. The youngster closed it out unsurprisingly with the cool command the greats of the sport display by taking third place in Mexico City, a race won after no little drama by Red Bull’s Max Verstappen, from the Ferrari of Lewis Hamilton, who was left fuming with his teammate Charles Leclerc, who finished fourth.
Afterwards Antonelli was clearly moved and said it was a moment that would live for ever but had left him almost speechless. His race engineer, Peter Bonnington, spoke perhaps for everyone who has watched the Italian this season, noting that this was just the beginning for Antonelli. He brought what has been a hugely successful campaign to a close as the sport’s 36th world champion at the Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez in only his second season in F1 and with four meetings still to go.
Sebastian Vettel was the previous youngest winner of the drivers’ championship, aged 23 in 2010, when Antonelli was just four years old. The Italian has been on top for almost the entire season, having taken the lead after the third round in Japan. With the Mercedes proving to be the class of the field in the opening half of the year under the new regulations, Antonelli made the most of it and established a dominant lead.
He won five of the first six races, outracing his teammate George Russell, who had been the pre-season favourite. Antonelli went on to take nine wins in a season where he failed to score points only twice, on both occasions because of mechanical failures. Even as Mercedes were pushed by Ferrari, McLaren and Red Bull, Antonelli retained a stranglehold on his lead, including sealing a win from 19th on the grid at his home grand prix at Monza.
Russell and Hamilton were his nearest contenders but neither was able to significantly narrow the gap. They had to win in Mexico to keep the title alive but Antonelli’s third place would have clinched it even had they done so. Antonelli did exactly what was required of him here, kept his cool and did not put a foot wrong in a race that was run at a frenetic pace.
Leclerc made a great start and tried to pass Hamilton for the lead at turn four took but cut the corner to do so. He did not give the place back and was investigated, with Hamilton furious his teammate had cost them a one-two in the race and let Verstappen ultimately into the lead. The stewards found Leclerc had gained an advantage in leaving the track and he was given a five-second penalty to take during his pit stop.
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