The key facts

  • At 20, Kimi Antonelli became the youngest Formula 1 champion in the series' history
  • Six wins in the first six races and a victory at Monza from 19th place built his lead over George Russell
  • The title was effectively decided by the Bahrain Grand Prix, relocated to Malaysia due to the Middle East conflict

The youngest champion in Formula 1 history

Kimi Antonelli, in his second season with Mercedes, has become the Formula 1 world champion and the youngest title holder in the series' 76-year history — at the start of the season, few considered such an outcome likely. AFP highlights six races that defined the 20-year-old Italian's path to the top.

Start of the season: five wins from six

After finishing second in the season-opening race in Australia, Antonelli in Shanghai became the youngest pole-sitter in history and took the first victory of his career — according to AFP, the second youngest in history after Max Verstappen. The Italian then won four races in a row, including Montreal, where his teammate George Russell, who had won the sprint and pole, retired on lap 30 due to a battery and power unit failure, losing a potential 18 points. In Monaco, Antonelli won for the fifth consecutive time; Russell, after a penalty for speeding in the pit lane and mechanics' work that ran past the deadline, dropped from third to 12th, outside the points. After six races, Antonelli led Lewis Hamilton of Ferrari by 66 points and Russell by 68.

Slump, Monza and the denouement

After five wins in the first six races, Antonelli went through a slump, winning only one of the next six — in Belgium. Russell's comeback was halted at Monza: having started 19th due to an engine change penalty, Antonelli, in his first race as a 20-year-old, fought through the field, overtook Russell and became the first Italian to win at Monza in 60 years — since Ludovico Scarfiotti. In Baku, Antonelli made a mistake in qualifying, hitting the wall, and started 16th; Russell took pole and won, but the Italian finished fifth, limiting the points loss. The final blow came from the Bahrain Grand Prix, relocated to Malaysia due to the Middle East conflict: Antonelli finished second behind a resurgent Verstappen, while Russell, running third, retired a few laps before the finish. The gap grew to 84 points, which, according to AFP, effectively ended the title fight and marked a new era in Formula 1.