Antonelli’s Historic Miami Victory
No Italian driver has secured the Formula 1 drivers' championship since Alberto Ascari in 1952 and 1953.
Kimi Antonelli's commanding triumph at the Miami Grand Prix, marking his third consecutive win, has been described as "something special" by 1996 world champion Damon Hill.
"We witnessed this young boy showing us what enormous potential he clearly has, and I'm almost stunned with how he has coped this season," Hill told BBC Radio 5 Live.
Hill further noted that the 19-year-old Antonelli is outperforming his teammate George Russell, who began the season as the favorite but now trails by 20 points in the championship after four races.
Antonelli’s victory also added another significant milestone to his record. Already the youngest pole winner and the youngest driver to lead the championship, he is now only the third driver in history to secure his first three pole positions consecutively, joining the ranks of Ayrton Senna and Michael Schumacher.
Additionally, Antonelli joins Hill and Mika Hakkinen as the only drivers to win their first three races in a row. All four drivers are world champions, with two often cited among the greatest in the sport’s history. While it may be premature to place Antonelli in that elite conversation, his performance this year has been remarkable.
This season is only Antonelli’s second in Formula 1. His debut season showed occasional promise but did not foreshadow the current level of success.
It is acknowledged that Mercedes provides the best car, and that Russell faced misfortune in the Chinese and Japanese Grands Prix, which he might have won. However, these factors do not diminish Antonelli’s dramatic improvement and elevated performance this season.
Mentorship and Management by Toto Wolff
Antonelli’s entry into Formula 1 is credited to Toto Wolff, Mercedes’ team principal, who identified his talent in karting at age 11 and has guided him since.
Wolff took the bold decision to promote Antonelli to F1 after just two years of racing, replacing Lewis Hamilton, despite criticism that this was premature.
"When you look throughout his trajectory, in karting and in the junior formulas, he was just outstanding. And when you think about what we said last year, it's exactly how he's performed and how he's developed now.
We had great ups and moments of brilliance and then moments where he was allowed to make mistakes.
We needed to calibrate and continue to mentor him while having pressure on him. But he just takes it so well and he's able to analyse it but not overthink it. He compartmentalises it. 'OK, I made a mistake. I put it away.'
And then, boom, this year the start the season, he's seen the grands prix (before), he's worked with the team, he knows the pressure that the media puts upon him.
It's easier to calm someone down that is wild. Because you won't be able to accelerate a donkey. So, for me, that was his best race so far. And it reminds me of the karting days or Formula 4.
But nevertheless, we just really need to stay calm here because such a success for such a young man at that stage, all of Italy will be on him."
Russell Faces Challenges and Must Regroup
For George Russell, this period represents a difficult phase. As a Mercedes protégé himself, he has awaited the opportunity to drive the best car for eight years.
Last year, Russell was generally the stronger driver compared to Antonelli, earning him the status of pre-season favorite.
Russell, 28, began the season strongly by winning the opening race in Australia from pole position, but subsequent races have not gone in his favor.
A technical issue likely cost him pole position in China, which Antonelli capitalized on for his maiden win. In Japan, a safety car incident handed the victory to Antonelli, where otherwise either McLaren’s Oscar Piastri or Russell might have prevailed.
In Miami, however, Antonelli’s win was indisputable. He secured pole position, while Russell qualified fifth, behind upgraded cars from Red Bull, McLaren, and Ferrari.
Despite a poor start—the sixth consecutive poor start for Antonelli—he remained composed, fought back, and overtook McLaren’s Lando Norris during the pit stop phase to claim victory.
Norris initially believed McLaren’s strategy error, allowing Mercedes to pit first, was the key factor, especially with rain looming.
However, McLaren team principal Andrea Stella explained that the team still had a margin to maintain the lead after their pit stop, but a combination of factors worked against them.
First, Antonelli gained significant time with an exceptional first lap after his pit stop, risking tyre overheating but staying within striking distance.
Then Norris made mistakes during his in-lap and experienced a slow pit stop. These events allowed Antonelli to close in and overtake Norris, maintaining the lead for the remainder of the race.
Russell maintains a measured outlook, acknowledging the season’s length and unpredictability.
"Clearly he's in a very good place at the moment and momentum is with him," Russell said. "But, having got enough experience myself in championships I've won and how momentum swings throughout the year, and looking at the championship last year, to be honest, I'm not even considering it.
It's just that I want to get back on to the top step of the podium. The first three races, I had the performance to do that, but this weekend I absolutely did not have the performance to do that.
So, I could be standing here now with three very different results in previous races, with this one being a bit of a one-off, but obviously things worked out differently in Japan and China, but that's Formula 1 sometimes."
Russell admitted his pace was "really, really poor" and that he has never adapted well to the Miami circuit’s low-grip surface and slow corners.
Hill commented on Russell’s situation:
"You can't have that, you can't have a track that you don't gel with. You've got to be good across everything. George now has to regroup, has to look at where he is at and what the new paradigm is."
Keeping Antonelli Grounded Amid Rising Expectations
Antonelli shared an emotional moment with his parents, Veronica and Marco, after his Miami victory.
While speaking to the media post-race, Wolff highlighted the important role Antonelli’s father, Marco, plays in keeping the young driver grounded.
"The risk is that he's being carried away too quickly," Wolff said. "And we know that the parents are going to keep him grounded. Right, Marco?"
"Right," Antonelli Sr responded.
Wolff continued: "The easier bit is making sure that he keeps both feet on the ground here in the team. His parents have played a big part in that, to leave him grounded.
The bigger problem is the Italian public. You know, now that they are not qualified for football (in the World Cup), it's all about (tennis number one Jannik) Sinner and Antonelli.
Sinner won in Madrid. So it's the two that are superstars. There's so much request, so much time from the media, from sponsors. And it's on us to keep the handbrake on that.
He has a killer of a team-mate that is extremely fast. The others are catching up in performance. And we want to play the long game.
He can hopefully win many championships over 10 years, 15 years, and we don't want to stumble now with these huge expectations that will sit on him. Because the moment he has a bad race, which will happen, where he makes a mistake, people will say, 'Oh, maybe he is not the one superstar that we thought.'"
Hill added:
"He's now charged up. It was a worry when he had good early results because I thought it was going to be a rush of blood to the head, now he thinks he's going to be world champion.
But looking at today's performance, this weekend, you have to say he has got every right to believe that."
- The remarkable life of Zanardi, a 21st century hero who inspired millions
- Can you name every location to have hosted a US F1 race?
- Andrew Benson Q&A: Send us your questions
