Mercedes driver Kimi Antonelli clinched the 2026 Formula One world championship at the Mexico City Grand Prix on Sunday 1 November 2026, becoming the youngest champion in the sport’s history at age 20. He needed a ninth-place finish or better and took third, behind race winner Max Verstappen and runner-up Lewis Hamilton.
Antonelli leads the standings on 380 points to Verstappen’s 261, Hamilton’s 259 and George Russell’s 250, a margin of 119 points over Verstappen, with four races remaining. Russell, his Mercedes teammate, finished sixth in Mexico City and dropped to fourth in the standings.
He breaks the record set by Sebastian Vettel, who won his first title in 2010 aged 23 years and 134 days. Antonelli is also the first Italian world champion since Alberto Ascari won in 1953.
