Kimi Antonelli won the United States Grand Prix in Austin on Sunday, moving to the brink of a record-breaking Formula One championship. Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff called the performance the best of the 20-year-old's short F1 career so far.
Antonelli secured his ninth Grand Prix victory of the season from pole position. The win was not enough to clinch the title in Texas, as both Lewis Hamilton and George Russell scored enough points to keep themselves mathematically in contention.
Wolff praises 'race of a champion'
Wolff described the Austin performance as better than Antonelli's win at Monza in September, where he triumphed from 19th on the grid. "The race of a champion who isn't the champion yet," the Mercedes chief said.
"I've said that this is probably the best race I've seen, but my problem is that I don't remember past races. Monza was actually also pretty good, obviously with the advantage of the home crowd. But the headline is this is the best we can keep."
Title within reach in Mexico City
Antonelli now holds a 123-point advantage over Russell, with a maximum of 125 still up for grabs. Hamilton is a further point behind. A ninth-place finish or better in Mexico City next Sunday would be enough to secure the crown, even if Russell wins the race.
When he clinches the title, Antonelli will shave three years off the record for the youngest F1 champion ever, taking the record away from Sebastian Vettel.
To have celebrated the title in Austin, Antonelli required mistakes from his competitors. Hamilton prolonged the championship battle by finishing fourth, while Russell managed only eighth place after being hampered by a five-second time penalty for leaving the track and gaining an advantage while defending from Oscar Piastri on lap one.
Antonelli focused on finishing strong
Antonelli said he is planning to get the job done in Mexico City. "We are very close. We'll try to finish on a high and hopefully we can clinch it very soon. I'm going to approach with the same mindset – to have fun and fight for another win. It would be best to finish well, that's the goal, but I'm just going to try to enjoy the rest of the season."
After taking the chequered flag, Antonelli whooped over the radio and celebrated with his mechanics in parc ferme. He credited his support network for helping him block out the noise around the championship. "I am very happy because I have a very good group of people around me in the team and my father who always comes," he said. "A great group of people that help me to be more relaxed and not worry about these kind of things, help me to block out the noise and allow me to enjoy the weekend and perform."
Antonelli added that he tried to ignore the championship talk on Thursday and focus on delivering the best result he could, saying the win was very important for him and the team.
