Kimi Antonelli became the youngest Formula 1 world champion at the Mexican Grand Prix, taking the title at 20 years and 68 days. He replaces Sebastian Vettel, who was 23 when he won the first of his four titles in 2010. Antonelli is the 36th world champion in Formula 1 history. "I'm speechless, I'm trying to understand what just happened," he said.
The title makes Antonelli the first Italian world champion since 1953, when Alberto Ascari successfully defended his crown. It is also the first drivers' title for the Mercedes team since Lewis Hamilton's triumph in 2020.
Max Verstappen won the race for Red Bull, with Hamilton second for Ferrari and Antonelli third. Ninth place would have been enough for Antonelli to secure the championship, and he is now uncatchable in the standings.
Antonelli started fourth on the second row. Hamilton had secured the 105th pole of his career and initially held the lead, but he was then attacked hard by Ferrari teammate Charles Leclerc. "I was pushed out by my teammate," Hamilton said angrily over the radio. He dropped to third, with Leclerc leading ahead of Verstappen and Antonelli. Antonelli's teammate George Russell fell from second to fifth and was also involved in an incident. Had Antonelli failed to score, either Russell, who finished sixth, or Hamilton would have needed to win to postpone the title decision. The stewards gave Leclerc a five-second penalty and Russell ten seconds. "Only five seconds?" Hamilton asked in disbelief, feeling the stewards were handing Leclerc the win. He approached his teammate after the tyre change.
Antonelli briefly led before his pit stop. His race engineer, Peter Bonnington, who had previously worked with Michael Schumacher and Hamilton at Mercedes, told him: "We are super happy with the speed. Keep it up." A heavy crash by Valtteri Bottas then brought out red flags. The suspension on his Cadillac broke on the straight at full speed, and the Finn appeared dazed as he climbed into the medical car. The race was suspended for more than 40 minutes. Hamilton, still angry about the Leclerc move and another unfavourable pit stop, said over the radio: "We have a big, big problem."
After the standing restart, Antonelli stayed out of trouble and then overtook Leclerc to move into third. A podium finish was his minimum target. He completed the laps through the Foro Sol and stopped his car to celebrate with the fans as the youngest champion in Formula 1. A later crash by Arvid Lindblad of Racing Bulls caused another Safety Car period, but Antonelli finished third.
Vettel had praised Antonelli weeks earlier, saying: "He has an incredible year." Antonelli can now add the constructors' title for Mercedes. The Brazilian Grand Prix next weekend will be his first race as Formula 1 world champion, and the title celebrations must come to an end by then.
Sources: FAZ.