Kimi Antonelli is one race away from history. The Mercedes driver started from pole at the US Grand Prix on Sunday, led by two seconds after the first lap and was never seriously threatened, crossing the line 13.078 seconds clear of Ferrari's Charles Leclerc at the Circuit of the Americas. Red Bull's Max Verstappen completed the podium.
It was the 20-year-old's ninth victory of the year. Because his two remaining rivals, Mercedes teammate George Russell and Ferrari's Lewis Hamilton, finished eighth and fourth, the title fight goes on for at least one more race. But Antonelli now needs only to finish ninth or better at the Mexico GP next week to become the youngest world champion in Formula One history, and the first Italian champion since Alberto Ascari in 1953.
How the race unfolded
Leclerc, starting third, beat Verstappen off the line, but the four-time champion soon took second back. The key call came on lap 25, when Antonelli made his only stop and rejoined fourth, knowing the cars ahead still had to pit. By lap 32 he had passed Leclerc to retake the lead and kept it the rest of the way on a one-stop strategy, finishing in 1:35:16.650.
Behind him, the order shuffled late. Verstappen reported car and radio problems and had a slow stop, while defending champion Lando Norris ran second until his tires faded in the closing laps, dropping him to fifth. Leclerc got past Verstappen in the late stages to take second, and Verstappen had to hold off a charging Hamilton for third. Isack Hadjar was sixth in the other Red Bull and McLaren's Oscar Piastri seventh.
Russell's afternoon summed up a season of bad luck. He picked up a five-second penalty for leaving the track on the opening lap and could not find a way past Piastri, settling for eighth. Had he finished lower and Hamilton missed the top four, Antonelli would have wrapped up the crown on Sunday, beating the record Sebastian Vettel set when he won his first title in 2010 at 23 years and 133 days.
The standings and what is next
Antonelli leaves with 365 points, far ahead of Russell on 242 and Hamilton on 241, with Verstappen at 236 and Leclerc at 233. Mercedes lead the constructors' table with 607 points to Ferrari's 474.
Antonelli credited the team's new upgrade package and its strategy call. "Hopefully we can clinch it soon," he said afterward, according to The Guardian. At the Mexico GP next week, a ninth-place finish will be enough.
Reporting sources: sports.yahoo.com, “Antonelli wins US Grand Prix to close on world title” · Sport | The Guardian, “Kimi Antonelli edges closer to title after winning United States Grand Prix: Formula One – as it happened”.
