Reigning World Champion Lando Norris has paid tribute to Kimi Antonelli forward of the Mexican Grand Prix, the place the Italian can safe the F1 title forward of teammate George Russell.
Following his victory at america Grand Prix, Kimi Antonelli secured a second match level of the season on the Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez.
In Austin, the Italian did all the pieces required to wrap up his first World Championship on Texan soil. Nonetheless, title rivals George Russell and Lewis Hamilton delayed the celebrations with respective P4 and P8 outcomes.
However, these further 25 factors made a maiden crown virtually inevitable in Spherical 19 of the 2026 Components 1 season. Antonelli will formally turn into F1’s thirty sixth Drivers’ World Champion on Sunday so long as neither Russell nor Hamilton wins the race.
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Lando Norris praises Antonelli’s second-year progress
With Antonelli set to wrap up the drivers’ crown in Mexico, reigning champion Lando Norris paid tribute to the Mercedes driver’s season.
“I feel it’s very spectacular what he’s been capable of do at his age, in his second yr in Components 1, and he’s going to be the youngest world champion ever,” Norris stated in Mexico Metropolis.
If Antonelli seals the title on Sunday, he’ll obtain the feat because the youngest champion at 20 years, 2 months, and seven days previous, shattering Sebastian Vettel’s long-standing report from 2010 (23 years, 4 months, and 11 days).
In doing so, he would additionally turn into the third Italian driver in historical past to say the game’s final prize, becoming a member of Giuseppe Farina (1950) and two-time Ferrari champion Alberto Ascari (1952 and 1953).
Antonelli’s impending triumph is available in simply his second F1 marketing campaign following a promising rookie yr in 2025, which featured podium finishes in Canada, São Paulo, and Las Vegas en path to seventh within the standings.
“It’s fairly unbelievable, particularly as a result of final yr… I wouldn’t say he had a nasty first season in Components 1; he was towards George, who I feel is excellent and has carried out very nicely, particularly within the final yr towards Lewis.”
After a stable foundational yr, Antonelli delivered his breakthrough efficiency early in 2026, capturing his maiden Grand Prix victory in China. Eight additional victories have adopted, placing him on the right track to turn into the primary driver to win the World Championship of their second season since Lewis Hamilton in 2008.
“He’s taken fairly an enormous step, I might say, from final yr to this yr when it comes to optimising issues and understanding the way to drive this yr’s automobile greater than different individuals as nicely,” Norris insisted.
Kimi Antonelli to beat Mercedes teammate George Russell for the crown
“Coping with the stress, the shortage of errors which have come from him in each qualifying and the races, the consistency to beat his teammate, the way in which he has is fairly [strong].
“As I stated, I price George, and I feel he’s an excellent driver.
“However Kimi has been two ranges above George the entire season, so he’s carried out a fairly unbelievable job, and I’m certain the world is aware of that.
“I don’t have to say it. I feel it’s apparent sufficient,” Norris concluded.
Russell’s difficult 2026 marketing campaign
Russell’s title problem has certainly been severely compromised by a mix of driver errors and extreme mechanical misfortune. Although Russell’s unforced errors, comparable to crashing out of the Dash lead in Singapore and a expensive Q3 mistake in Austin (P6) that doomed his race, have undoubtedly drained his factors tally, mechanical unreliability and operational setbacks have taken a further toll on the Briton’s season.
Russell’s marketing campaign has been suffering from a list of technical failures, together with a Energy Unit shutdown in Malaysia, a battery failure in Canada, an anti-stall subject at first in Hungary on high of a water leak in qualifying, a gearbox glitch throughout Q3 in China, vibration points in qualifying in Japan, and an power deployment fault that preceded his gravel-bound contact with Hamilton at Spa.
Against this, Antonelli has loved a far smoother run on the reliability entrance. His solely main mechanical DNF occurred in Barcelona following {an electrical} shutdown, alongside a left-front wheel defend subject at Silverstone that compelled further pit stops.
That isn’t to decrease the Italian’s distinctive composure. Except for minor setbacks, comparable to an FP3 crash in Australia, a nasty execution at first in Japan, observe restrict penalties within the Miami Dash, and a Q3 mistake in Baku, Antonelli’s second-year has been remarkably flawless, simply as Norris highlighted.
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