Kimi Antonelli has made history as Formula One's youngest world champion. He is also the first champion from Italy since 1953. He finished third at the Mexico City Grand Prix on Sunday, behind Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton, both multiple champions.
The 20-year-old Italian drove his Mercedes to his 16th podium finish this season. It was an intense race, with two safety cars and a red-flag stoppage.
“Thank you so much, we did it,” Antonelli said tearfully over the team radio during his slow-down lap. His race engineer, Peter Bonnington, replied that it was “a pleasure to be on the journey with you, but it’s just the first chapter.”
Antonelli quickly regained his composure. After thanking his family and Mercedes, he said, “We did it. I am so grateful for this moment, and it is one I will live forever. I’m speechless, just trying to process what has happened.”
He added, “It’s been an incredible season and to share the podium with Max and Lewis is truly incredible. I felt more tense this weekend, but I am so happy we got it done.”
At 20 years and 68 days, he broke the record of the youngest champion held by Sebastian Vettel by over three years. Antonelli is also Italy’s first world champion since Alberto Ascari won with Ferrari in 1953.
The race had two parts, with a 45-minute pause after Valtteri Bottas crashed his Cadillac. Verstappen finished 0.799 seconds ahead of Hamilton, while Antonelli was third, 3.207 seconds behind.
This was Verstappen’s sixth win in Mexico, his third of the season, and the 74th of his career. Charles Leclerc finished fourth in the second Ferrari. He caused a team dispute after colliding with Hamilton on the first lap.
Hamilton looked frustrated after the race. “I think we had the pace to win today, but it wasn’t meant to be and we’ll take it offline and figure out what we can do in the background,” he said. “We have to hold some serious talks behind the scenes.”
Outgoing world champion Lando Norris finished fifth in his McLaren. Antonelli’s teammate, George Russell, needed a win to stop Antonelli from clinching the title but ended up sixth. Oscar Piastri in the second McLaren, Franco Colapinto in an Alpine, Liam Lawson in a Racing Bull, and Pierre Gasly in the second Alpine followed.
“The first start made the race for me,” Verstappen said. He moved from fifth to second on the first lap. “We lacked some pace, but I hung in there and I was sweating at the end to keep Lewis behind.”
Hamilton had a clean start from his record 105th pole position. He led through the 800-metre run to Turn One. Russell struggled against Leclerc and a charging Verstappen. Leclerc attacked Verstappen, running off the track to take the lead. Hamilton was then passed by Verstappen, while Antonelli overtook Russell for fourth.
On this chaotic first lap, Isack Hadjar spun after hitting Russell and dropped to last place. Hamilton radioed Ferrari to say he had been “pushed out by my own teammate.” The stewards looked into the incidents and, on lap 13, gave Leclerc a five-second penalty and Russell a ten-second penalty for causing a collision.
Leclerc opened a 2.5-second lead by lap 10 after a virtual safety car intervention. Both Aston Martins retired, with Lance Stroll parking his car at Turn Five. Leclerc pitted on lap 27, followed by Verstappen, who passed him in the pits while serving his penalty.
Hamilton took the lead again but pitted one lap later. Antonelli pitted on lap 43 and dropped to fourth before Bottas crashed due to a suspension failure. A safety car was deployed before the race was red-flagged.
After a 45-minute delay, the remaining 25-lap sprint on soft tyres resumed. Hamilton was back in third ahead of Antonelli, who surged past Leclerc, who locked up. Antonelli held on to third while Hamilton continued to pressure Verstappen.
It was fitting that Antonelli, who was in tears as he crossed the finish line, stood on the podium with two of the sport’s all-time greats, who have 11 world titles between them.
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