Mexico City (AFP) – Reflecting his incredible season, Italian Kimi Antonelli, 20, was crowned Formula 1 world champion with panache by taking third place in the Mexican Grand Prix at the wheel of his Mercedes on Sunday in Mexico City.
Published on: 02/11/2026 - 01:37
To make the party even better, Antonelli shared the podium with two other Formula 1 legends, the Dutch winner Max Verstappen (Red Bull) and the Englishman Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari), respectively four and seven times world champions.
Overwhelmed by emotion, Antonelli, wrapped in an Italian flag, was carried in triumph by his two predecessors in front of more than 30,000 spectators gathered in the stands of the Foro Sol, probably the best place on the calendar to celebrate a world title.
“I could never have achieved this without my team and my family so a huge thank you to them. This season has really been incredible and sharing this title with Max and Lewis makes this moment even more beautiful. I’m so happy, we will be able to enjoy the rest of the season,” exulted the Italian.
Once Verstappen and Hamilton had left, the Silver Arrow which allowed him to be crowned was hoisted at the foot of the podium and Antonelli, with tears in his eyes, tenderly kissed her to thank her for making him the youngest world champion in the history of F1 at just 20 years and 68 days old, in only his second season in the premier category of motorsport.
Antonelli thus ended an interminable wait for Italy, a country where motor sports are king. He became the third Italian F1 world champion on Sunday, the first in more than 73 years and the coronation of Alberto Ascari in 1953.
"It's a day that I will remember for the rest of my life. A big thank you to the team for the enormous work done and all the support they have given me. The season has really been incredible, we have been consistent all year," explained the Italian, interviewed at the foot of the podium by German Nico Rosberg, 2016 world champion with Mercedes.
After this interview, while the famous Italian song "Sarà perché ti amo" resounded through the speakers of the Foro Sol, Antonelli went to sit on the podium, his eyes clouded with tears, and stared into space as if he were struggling to realize what he had just accomplished.
New darling of the paddock
Earlier, during the race, he had again shown nerves of steel and control as he had during the entire season. While he could have been content to control, he pulled away to get a new podium.
Starting in fourth place, the Italian avoided the chaos of the first two turns, unlike the Ferraris of Hamilton and Monegasque Charles Leclerc who struggled and opened the way to victory for Verstappen, who was not asking for so much.
Leader for a few laps depending on the tire change strategies, Antonelli, once is not usual this season, was unlucky since he went to the pits only one lap before the deployment of the safety car after the violent exit from the track of the Finn Valtteri Bottas (Cadillac), victim of a rupture of his front left suspension at full speed.
Fourth on the grid during the second start following this accident, Antonelli managed to get the better of Leclerc to secure a 16th podium (including nine victories) in 19 races this year, proof of his incredible consistency.
In tears in his helmet barely after crossing the finish line, the Italian prodigy was then able to savor his victory to the roars of the supporters present in the Foro Sol.
He fell into the arms of Hamilton, to whom he is close after having rubbed shoulders with him at Mercedes when he was a member of the young driver sector of the German team, before being congratulated in turn by Verstappen.
He then walked towards his parents Marco and Veronica, and his younger sister Maggie to give them a touching hug, before jumping into the arms of his team members.
With Antonelli, Formula 1 therefore has a 36th world champion and a new darling, who has conquered the paddock both with his simplicity and his talent.
© 2026 AFP
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