Formula 1

Victory in Madrid! Kimi Antonelli Extends His World Championship Lead

Kimi Antonelli extended his lead in the world championship in Madrid.(Bild: AP/Bernat Armangue)

Kimi Antonelli also won in Madrid, further extending his lead in the World Championship. The young Italian finished ahead of Max Verstappen and Lando Norris. World Championship runner-up and teammate George Russell finished only fifth.

Mercedes driver Kimi Antonelli celebrated his eighth victory of the season at the Formula 1 debut on the new track in Madrid, taking another big step toward the World Championship title. On Sunday, the 20-year-old Italian won the long-unspectacular Spanish Grand Prix at the “Madring,” narrowly edging out Red Bull driver Max Verstappen and world champion Lando Norris in the McLaren, who, while leading, suffered bad luck during a virtual safety car phase.

“I feel sorry for Lando”
 “I feela littlesorry for Lando,”Antonelli radioed after crossing the finish line. While the win was good, the rising star added shortly afterward in his victory interview, “it doesn’t feel good because Lando would have deserved the win.” Verstappen was pleased with a “great result,” while Norris, on the other hand, was frustrated by the poor timing of the “VSC.” “There was nothing I could have done. I had already passed the pits. Luck wasn’t on our side; we would have deserved it today.”

Here are the results:

George Russell, in the second Mercedes, had to settle for fifth place behind Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc and is already 81 points behind Antonelli after the 14th race of the season. World Championship third-place finisher Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari) retired from a Grand Prix—one that, thankfully, saw none of the feared accidents—due to technical problems and now trails the leader by 101 points. After his daring drive at Monza and his maiden victory in Madrid, Antonelli remains well on his way to becoming the youngest world champion in F1 history.

Here are the standings in the Drivers’ Championship:

A Turbulent Startto the Race
 Ahead of the Grand Prix at the exhibition center in the Spanish capital, several Real Madrid pros—including Vinicius Jr., Jude Bellingham, Marc Cucurella, and Thibaut Courtois—gathered on the starting grid. Tennis legend Rafael Nadal was also right in the thick of the action and, shortly afterward, watched as pole-sitter Norris defended his lead during a thrilling start. Antonelli attacked the defending champion but cut back several times to avoid a collision. As a result, Antonelli voluntarily let Norris back past, but Verstappen also took advantage of the situation to pass the Mercedes star.

On the 4th of 57 laps, Verstappen received a team order to let Antonelli and Hamilton pass because he was alleged to have overtaken the Ferrari driver illegally earlier. The four-time champion reluctantly obeyed the order; shortly afterward, the stewards closed their investigation. Shortly afterward, Hamilton had to pull his Ferrari into the pits due to brake problems.

Hardly Any Overtaking, No Accidents
On the tight street circuit, there washardly any overtaking, but the fearedaccidentsalso failed to materialize. On Lap 14, Lance Stroll inadvertently disrupted the race: The Aston Martin driver pulled his car, which was experiencing brake problems, into the emergency exit; Antonelli and Verstappen took advantage of the ensuing Virtual Safety Car to make a quicker tire change. Norris had already passed the pit entrance but didn’t come into the pits until a lap later during normal race conditions, losing his lead in the process.

A procession ensued, with Leclerc leading the race on an old set of tires, well ahead of Antonelli, Verstappen, and Norris. Leclerc was hoping for a safety car phase to maintain his lead. However, the Monegasque driver was denied that luck. After the Ferrari driver’s pit stop, there was no thrilling battle for the win.