Kimi Antonelli is on the brink of becoming the youngest F1 champion in history, while his nearest rival says he is out of the fight.
Antonelli’s win in Madrid on Sunday night (AEST) was his eighth grand prix win of the season, extending his lead in the drivers’ championship over teammate George Russell to 81 points.
Ferrari’s Lewis Hamilton is a further 20 points adrift with eight or nine race weekends remaining, depending on whether F1 can race in the Middle East to end the season.
Mercedes have lived up to pre-season expectation that they would be the best team in 2026 but Russell, in his eighth season, was expected to win a maiden drivers’ championship.
But Antonelli, in just his second season, has been brilliant all season and has a massive lead in the championship.
After Sunday’s Spanish Grand Prix, where Russell placed fifth and conceded a further 15 points to Antonelli, the British driver conceded his hopes of winning the title this year are all but gone.
“We [Mercedes] are in a great position to win the constructors’ [championship]. Realistically, I’m not in the fight for the drivers’,” Russell said in Madrid.
“That just allows me to focus on race-by-race, and try to focus on just getting some good results.“
Sebastian Vettel became the youngest F1 world champion in 2010 when he claimed his maiden title at 23 years, 133 days.
Antonelli took the mantle as youngest driver to lead the championship earlier this year — but when asked if he could relax with an 81-point lead, the young Italian said he would not be taking his foot off the gas.
“That’s exactly what I don’t want to do,” he said.
“I want to keep pushing race by race, keep delivering and keep enjoying all the way.”
F1 heads to Azerbaijan for a grand prix around the streets of Baku on Saturday, September 26.
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