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Antonelli becomes youngest Formula One world champion
Carlos Rodriguez •  November 2nd, 2026 12:17 pm
Mercedes driver Kimi Antonelli has become world champion after finishing third in Mexico | Photo: AP
Twenty-year-old Mercedes driver Kimi Antonelli has become the youngest champion in Formula One history, with four races still left in the season.
Antonelli, the first Italian to win the title since Alberto Ascari in 1953, took an unassailable lead in the standings over teammate George Russell and Ferrari's Lewis Hamilton after the Mexico City Grand Prix on Monday (NZ Time).
The Italian finished third in the race, which was won by Red Bull's Max Verstappen.
Red Bull driver Max Verstappen won the Mexico Grand Prix for a sixth time | Photo: AP
Sebastian Vettel was the previous youngest champion at age 23 in 2010.
"Thank you so much, we did it, we did it, thank you so much ... thank you," Antonelli said on the team radio after securing the title.
Verstappen won the Mexico City GP for the sixth time, with pole-sitting Hamilton finishing second.
The race was stopped on lap 46 with a red flag after Valtteri Bottas crashed into the wall at the first corner, following issues with his right-side suspension.
Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton gave world champion Kimi Antonelli a real lift | Photo: AP
Cadillac reported that the driver was given "further medical assessments as a precaution".
Bottas got out of the car unaided and waved to the fans before leaving the track.
At the restart, Verstappen was first, followed by Charles Leclerc, Hamilton, Antonelli, Lando Norris and Russell, and the Red Bull driver did not let the win slip away.
After Mexico, F1 heads to Brazil and then to Las Vegas. It remains uncertain whether the final two scheduled Grands Prix - in Qatar and Abu Dhabi -will take place, given instability in the region.
YOUNGEST FORMULA ONE WORLD CHAMPIONS
20 years 68 days (2026) Kimi Antonelli, Italy
23 years 133 days (2010) Sebastian Vettel, Germany
23 years 300 days (2008) Lewis Hamilton, Britain
24 years 57 days (2005) Fernando Alonso, Spain
24 years 73 days (2021) Max Verstappen, Netherlands
25 years 273 days (1972) Emerson Fittipaldi, Brazil
