Antonelli Is Champion at 20 as Verstappen Wins in Mexico City

Kimi Antonelli is the Formula 1 world champion. At the Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez on 1 November, the 20-year-old Mercedes driver needed only ninth place. He finished third, 4.006 seconds behind race winner Max Verstappen, according to the official Formula 1 report. That makes him the youngest champion in the sport's history and, as GrandPrix.com notes, ends Italy's 73-year wait for a world champion, going back to Alberto Ascari in 1953.

The race itself belonged to Verstappen. Starting tenth after a one-place grid penalty, the Red Bull driver took his third win of the season, 0.799 seconds ahead of Lewis Hamilton, who had started from pole for Ferrari.

How the race unfolded

The flashpoint came at the start. Hamilton and teammate Charles Leclerc ran side by side into Turn 1 and again into Turn 4; both left the track and Leclerc emerged in front. The stewards gave Leclerc a five-second penalty, which he served at his stop at the end of lap 27, handing the lead to Verstappen, according to PlanetF1. Hamilton was unimpressed on the radio: "The stewards are basically handing Charles this win."

On lap 43, Valtteri Bottas's Cadillac suffered a front-left suspension failure under braking and hit the Turn 1 barrier hard. The Safety Car became a red flag for barrier repairs; Bottas was checked at the medical centre and cleared. A second Safety Car followed on lap 59, after Arvid Lindblad crashed following contact with Oscar Piastri. Verstappen held on at the final restart.

The Mexico City top ten

• 1. Max Verstappen (Red Bull). 2. Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari), +0.799s. 3. Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes), +4.006s.
• 4. Charles Leclerc (Ferrari). 5. Lando Norris (McLaren). 6. George Russell (Mercedes), after a 10-second penalty for hitting Isack Hadjar on lap one.
• 7. Oscar Piastri (McLaren). 8. Franco Colapinto (Alpine). 9. Liam Lawson (Racing Bulls), from the pit lane. 10. Pierre Gasly (Alpine).

The standings and what comes next

According to RacingNews365, Antonelli leaves Mexico on 380 points, 119 clear of Verstappen (261), with Hamilton on 259, Russell on 250 and Leclerc on 245. Mercedes leads the constructors' table 630 to Ferrari's 504 and only just missed sealing that title in Mexico; it now goes to Brazil.

The season continues at Interlagos on 8 November, where Hamilton is due to make his 400th Grand Prix start, followed by the Las Vegas weekend of 20 to 22 November. Sergio Pérez made his 300th start at home and was the last classified finisher after a pit-lane speeding penalty.

Ninth place was all he needed. He took a podium and a place in history.

Antonelli's first words as champion, as published by Formula 1, were about the people behind him: "We did it. And, you know, without them, I wouldn't be here."