Antonelli wins Madrid thriller to stretch F1 lead to 81 points
Kimi Antonelli won the Spanish Grand Prix in Madrid ahead of Max Verstappen and Lando Norris to become Madring's first Formula 1 winner. Formula 1
The Mercedes driver also stretched his championship lead to 81 points. BBC Sport That is a huge cushion. It changes every calculation from here.
Norris had done the hard part. The McLaren driver took pole, his third in four races, and led Antonelli by more than six seconds after 13 laps. He looked in control on the new street circuit.
Then luck turned. Norris had just passed the pit lane entry at the end of lap 14 when officials called a virtual safety car, a period when drivers must slow to a set pace rather than race flat out. It had been ordered because Lance Stroll's Aston Martin had stopped in the run-off area at Turn 20.
Timing was everything. The caution lasted less than a lap. Antonelli and Verstappen were able to dive in for fresh tyres while the field was slowed. Norris could not. He had to complete another full-speed lap before he could stop, by which time the virtual safety car had ended.
A stop under the virtual safety car costs about 11 seconds less than a normal green-flag stop, because rivals are circulating slowly. Norris therefore rejoined more than 15 seconds behind Antonelli and more than nine seconds behind Verstappen. His stop hurt him twice over, with a further five seconds lost to problems with his two right-hand side tyres.
Norris chased hard. He closed on Verstappen in the final stint and finished 5.089 seconds behind the winner, but he could not find a way past on the tight Madring layout. Verstappen held second. Norris took third.
Neither driver hid his feelings afterwards. Antonelli said: "Lando deserved to win" and added that his team did not deserve to win. Norris said he believed he deserved victory after the ill-timed caution. Formula 1 He added of the rule: "It is a rule that should not define a whole race."
McLaren team principal Andrea Stella said there was no option for Norris to keep the lead given when the caution fell. Formula 1 To pit a lap earlier would have been too soon. To stay out longer would have lost even more time.
Behind them, George Russell finished fifth and stayed second in the drivers' championship. Reuters
What makes this stand out is the margin between brilliance and bad timing. Norris drove the fastest race for 13 laps. One corner too late to the pit entry cost him the win. For fans, this means the title fight is now about damage control for everyone chasing Antonelli.
