Andrea Kimi Antonelli clinched the Formula One drivers' championship at the Mexico City Grand Prix on Sunday, becoming the youngest world champion in the sport's history at 20 years and 68 days old — breaking Sebastian Vettel's 2010 record by more than three years — despite finishing third in a race won by Max Verstappen.
Verstappen took the win at the Autódromo Hernános Rodríguez ahead of Lewis Hamilton, with Antonelli crossing the line 4.006 seconds back in third, enough to clinch the title with 380 points to Verstappen's 261 and Hamilton's 259, an unassailable lead with only 100 points left to contest across the season's final four races. Antonelli is the first Italian world champion since Alberto Ascari in 1953, and only the fourth driver ever to win the title in just his second F1 season, following Juan Manuel Fangio in 1951, Jacques Villeneuve in 1997 and Hamilton himself in 2008.
A chaotic race to clinch it
The race itself was anything but straightforward. Hamilton and Charles Leclerc collided fighting for position on the opening lap; Leclerc ran off track at Turn 4, grabbed the lead anyway and was handed a five-second penalty, while Hamilton complained afterward that stewards were "basically handling Charles" all race. A red flag followed a crash by Cadillac's Valtteri Bottas, caused by a suspension failure, setting up a standing restart with 26 laps remaining; Hamilton and Verstappen made contact at Turn 1 on the restart before Verstappen held the lead for good. A separate safety car came out after Arvid Lindblad and Oscar Piastri tangled, and the race ended with a string of post-race penalties across the field, including a 30-second penalty and stop-go for Pierre Gasly.
It's a day I will remember forever.
Andrea Kimi Antonelli
Antonelli struggled as a rookie in 2025, with teammate George Russell widely expected to be Mercedes' title contender heading into this season. Instead Antonelli finished second in the year's opening race, won the second, then strung together five consecutive victories that effectively ended the championship fight well before Mexico City, winning nine races in all and reaching the podium in every completed race but two.
Praise from rivals
Verstappen, who has now lost the title he held for four straight years, was gracious in defeat: "Incredible. At his age, to be so solid, not make big mistakes, and of course also beat your experienced team-mate, he's just driven incredible, and I'm very proud of him." Outgoing champion Lando Norris added: "It couldn't have gone to a better person... he's made everyone else look silly. He has achieved history." Hamilton and Verstappen hoisted Antonelli onto their shoulders on the podium, a gesture Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff called "incredible" and "complete serene." Antonelli said the achievement meant more given the doubts that trailed his rookie year: "The fact that some people said that I wasn't belonging to F1... being able to experience those moments made me much more ready ahead of this year."
