Antonelli wins US Grand Prix, moves within two points of F1 title

Kimi Antonelli won the United States Grand Prix from pole position on Sunday, moving to the brink of his first Formula One drivers’ championship.

The 20-year-old Mercedes driver completed the 56-lap race at Austin’s Circuit of the Americas 13.078 seconds ahead of Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc. Red Bull’s Max Verstappen finished third, with Lewis Hamilton fourth and reigning champion Lando Norris fifth.

Antonelli made a strong start and used a one-stop strategy, waiting until lap 25 to make his only pit stop. A late virtual safety car, triggered when Valtteri Bottas’s Cadillac stopped on track, helped Verstappen resist pressure from Hamilton for the final podium place.

The victory was Antonelli’s ninth of the season and increased his championship total to 365 points. He leads Mercedes teammate George Russell, who finished eighth in Austin, by 123 points and Hamilton by 124, with 125 points still available across the final five races.

Antonelli can secure the title at the Mexican Grand Prix by finishing ninth or higher. He would also be crowned champion if neither Russell nor Hamilton wins there. If successful, he would become Formula One’s youngest world champion.

“It was the result we needed and the whole team deserve it so much,” Antonelli said. “I know we’re very close. We try to finish on a high and hopefully we can clinch it very soon.”