Kimi Antonelli Becomes Youngest F1 Champion at 20
Kimi Antonelli is the Formula 1 world champion, and at 20 he is the youngest driver to win the title. He clinched it at the Mexican Grand Prix on Sunday by finishing third behind Max Verstappen, the Guardian reported. He needed only ninth place or better to secure the drivers' championship, which goes to the driver with the most points across the season.
The title came with four meetings, or rounds, still to run. Antonelli is the first Italian to win the drivers' title since Alberto Ascari in 1953. The previous youngest champion was Sebastian Vettel, who was 23 when he won in 2010.
This is only Antonelli's second season in F1. He took the championship lead after the third round in Japan and held it for almost the whole year. He won five of the first six races and nine in total. He failed to score points only twice, both times because of mechanical problems.
His teammate, George Russell, had been the favourite before the season started. Russell and Ferrari's Lewis Hamilton were Antonelli's closest challengers. Hamilton took pole position in Mexico City, meaning he started from the front of the grid, according to Reuters. It was his 105th pole of a career that already holds the record, and his first for Ferrari.
Antonelli's route to the top has been quick. Mercedes brought him into their young driver programme when he was 12. He was promoted to a race seat last season, taking over from Hamilton, who moved to Ferrari. He has won races from well down the field too. He took his home grand prix at Monza from 19th on the grid.
Antonelli has been candid about the pressure. He told Formula1.com that he felt more tense than usual during qualifying in Mexico City.
For a driver so young, the title is a clear marker. Antonelli now has his name alongside the sport's long list of champions, and Mercedes has its first drivers' title since the team's run of success earlier in the decade. The remaining rounds will still matter for the rest of the field, but the championship battle for first place is over.
