Showing posts with label Andrea Kimi Antonelli. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Andrea Kimi Antonelli. Show all posts
Monday, 27 July 2026
Sunday, 19 July 2026
KIMI ANTONELLI WINS BELGIAN GRAND PRIX TO EXTEND F1 CHAMPIIONSHIP LEAD
Mercedes driver won his sixth GP of 2026 as championship rival and teammate George Russell crashes out on first lap.
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| Kimi Antonelli celebrates winning the Belgian Grand Prix for Mercedes at the Spa-Francorchamps circuit, July 19 [Andrej Isakovic/AFP] |
Kimi Antonelli won the Belgian Grand Prix for Mercedes on Sunday to stretch his Formula One lead to 45 points over Ferrari’s Lewis Hamilton on a bleak day for teammate George Russell, his closest title rival heading into the race.
Russell had been the 19-year-old Italian’s closest rival before the start at Spa-Francorchamps, but the Briton spun off into the gravel on the opening lap after a collision with Hamilton while trying to make up places lost at lights out.
Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc was second in the 44-lap race, 1.952 seconds behind after leading, thanks to a pit stop while a virtual safety car was deployed, with Max Verstappen third to give Red Bull their 300th Formula One podium.
Hamilton finished fourth, despite serving a five-second penalty for the collision with Russell, but remained under investigation for an unsafe release from a pit stop that could drop him to fifth and further stretch Antonelli’s lead.
It was Antonelli’s sixth win in 10 rounds this season, leaving him 50 points clear of Russell. Antonelli was first in qualifying, continuing Mercedes’ clean sweep of pole positions this season.
“It’s great to be back on the top step after a few difficult rounds,” said Antonelli, who had drawn a blank in two of the past three rounds.
“It was a hard-fought race. We lost first place with the VSC but then we managed to make our way back.
“The momentum was always there. It was just about getting the results,” he added. “Today we were a bit lucky with what happened in terms of the championship but you have to take every opportunity because we saw how much it can swing.”
McLaren’s Oscar Piastri finished fifth, with Isack Hadjar sixth for Red Bull from last on the grid. Reigning champion Lando Norris was seventh for McLaren after starting 13th due to a 10-place grid drop.
Gabriel Bortoleto brought more points for Audi in eighth place, with Arvid Lindblad ninth for Racing Bulls and Argentine Franco Colapinto completing the scoring in 10th place for Renault-owned Alpine.
- Reuters
Saturday, 4 July 2026
F1 BRITISH GP: KIMI ANTONELLI TAKES FIRST SPRINT WIN WITH PASS ON LEWIS HAMILTON
Championship leader Antonelli makes half-distance overtake on sprint polesitter Hamilton to claim first blood at Silverstone
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| Andrea Kimi Antonelli, Mercedes Photo by: Sam Bloxham / LAT Images via Getty Images |
Formula 1 championship leader Kimi Antonelli beat Lewis Hamilton to win a frantic British Grand Prix sprint race at Silverstone for his first Saturday victory of the 2026 campaign.
The Mercedes driver crossed the line 2.7 seconds ahead of the seven-time world champion in a race where Antonelli and Hamilton had proven dominant over the rest of the field.
McLaren's Lando Norris completed the podium, but was seven seconds behind the Ferrari driver as two separate front-running groups quickly emerged during the 17-lap sprint contest.
This was evident right from the start as pole man Hamilton and Antonelli bolted clear at lights out and built a four-second buffer across the opening three laps, with a scrappy battle behind emerging over third place.
That was a five-way tussle between Max Verstappen, Lando Norris, George Russell, Oscar Piastri and Charles Leclerc, who all continuously traded places in the return of yo-yo racing at the high-energy Silverstone.
Drivers were running with different levels of energy through the lap and this led to overtakes at various parts of Silverstone, whether it be Verstappen's move on Russell at Abbey, or Leclerc on Piastri at Brooklands.
The battle for third started to die down come the halfway mark and, ultimately, it was Norris who emerged victorious, but as he locked down his podium, the battle for the lead finally heated up.
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| Getty |
That came after Hamilton had built a steady one-second advantage over Antonelli, who closed in come lap eight and made his first attack on the home favourite down into Brooklands.
Hamilton held firm but not for too long, as the 19-year-old eventually moved by into the lead on Hangar Straight before soon boasting too much pace for the Ferrari to keep up.
It was around this point on lap 10 when the fight behind Norris intensified once more, as Verstappen dropped into sixth behind Russell and Leclerc before a steady final seven laps.
Russell therefore took fourth behind Norris, finished a second behind the McLaren, ahead of fifth-placed Leclerc and Verstappen in sixth, with Piastri taking two points for coming seventh.
The final points position went to the Racing Bulls of Liam Lawson, who moved into the top eight Red Bull’s Isack Hadjar fell out of the points-paying positions at the start. Lawson defended the point from his former team-mate late, on but in contentious circumstances as he squeezed his former team-mate under braking at Stowe.
This all leaves Antonelli with a 43-point championship advantage over second-placed Russell ahead of Sunday’s grand prix, with third-placed Hamilton now four behind his fellow Briton.
- Ed Hardy
Friday, 26 June 2026
Tuesday, 23 June 2026
Sunday, 7 June 2026
Saturday, 6 June 2026
Monday, 25 May 2026
Sunday, 24 May 2026
Saturday, 23 May 2026
Wednesday, 6 May 2026
Tuesday, 5 May 2026
KIMI ANTONELLI SHOUTS OUT JANNIK SINNER AFTER MIAMI GRAND PRIX WIN
The world No. 1 and the 19-year-old Formula 1 driver have lifted trophies on the same day for the third time this season.
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| © 2026 Kym Illman, Tennis Channel |
Two of Italy’s biggest young stars are moving in sync, and Sunday offered the latest proof.
On the same day that Jannik Sinner lifted the trophy at the Mutua Madrid Open, he received a major shoutout from Formula 1 driver Kimi Antonelli following his victory at the Miami Grand Prix.
“Jannik has been doing great too,” Antonelli said after the race, which took place at the Hard Rock Stadium. “I want to dedicate this victory to (the late) Alex (Zanardi), but also to Jannik. He’s always been very kind to me.
“I’m just very happy that both of us are experiencing beautiful moments like these.”
A lifelong Formula 1 fan and an official ambassador for the sport, Sinner wasted no time dispatching No. 2 seed Alexander Zverev 6-1, 6-2 in Madrid on Sunday. The world No. 1 didn’t face a single break point, and wrapped up the win in just 58 minutes. The victory marked Sinner’s fourth title of the year, and his fifth consecutive ATP Masters 1000 triumph.
A few hours later, the 19-year-old Mercedes driver crossed the finish line in Miami, continuing the Italian sports bonanza with his third career race win.
Sinner and Antonelli are not just two of Italy’s brightest young sports stars—they’re also uniquely in sync when it comes to lifting trophies.
In one of the more unique cross-sport stats, each of Antonelli’s three grand prix wins in 2026 has come on the same day as one of Sinner’s Masters 1000 titles:
- March 15: Sinner wins Indian Wells Masters and Antonelli wins Chinese Grand Prix
- March 29: Sinner wins Miami Masters and Antonelli wins Japanese Grand Prix
- May 3: Sinner wins Madrid Masters and Antonelli wins Miami Grand Prix
GRANDEEE 🇮🇹 ❤️🔥 @janniksin and Kimi Antonelli have now won three titles on the same day 🤯 #MMOPEN #MiamiGP pic.twitter.com/Kkoyc9Q4l9— Tennis Channel (@TennisChannel) May 3, 2026
Back in March, Sinner had previously given the 19-year-old a shoutout after winning in Miami, where he defeated Jiri Lehecka in straight sets. After the final, Sinner signed the camera lens with the message: “Bez, Kimi, Italia”—a reference to the two other Italian winners on that day, including Antonelli in Formula 1 and Marco Bezzecchi in MotoGP.
Much like Sinner’s own ATP Tour breakthrough at age 22, Antonelli has long been tipped for Formula 1 greatness and now carries the expectations of a nation closely tracking his rise.
Toto Wolff, the Mercedes team principal, has already cautioned about the growing spotlight surrounding the two young stars.
“The easier bit is making sure that he (Antonelli) keeps both feet on the ground here in the team... The bigger problem is the Italian public,” Wolff said.
“Now that they are not qualified for football (in FIFA World Cup), it’s all about Sinner and Antonelli, and Antonelli and Sinner. Sinner won in Madrid, so it’s the two that are superstars.”
Sinner is next scheduled to compete on home soil in Rome for the Internazionali BNL d’Italia, which begins on May 6, before heading to Paris for Roland Garros.
Meanwhile, Antonelli will turn his attention to the Canadian Grand Prix and the prestigious Monaco Grand Prix—the latter set for June 7, the same day as the Roland Garros final.
- Stephanie Livaudais
Sunday, 3 May 2026
KIMI ANTONELLI MAKES HISTORY AT MIAMI GRAND PRIX 2I26
Kimi Antonelli becomes the 23rd driver in F1 history to win three straight Grands Prix!
20 on that list have gone on to become World Champion.
Thursday, 9 April 2026
Sunday, 29 March 2026
'STILL EARLY DAYS TO THINK ABOUT THE CHAMPIONSHIP' – YOUNGEST F1 POINTS LEADER ANTONELLI REFLECTS ON JAPANESE GP VICTORY
Back-to-back wins have moved Kimi Antonelli into the lead of the Drivers' Championship for the first time.
Kimi Antonelli believes it is "still early days to think about the championship" despite taking victory in the Japanese Grand Prix and becoming the youngest driver to lead the championship in Formula 1 history.
The 19-year-old Italian made it back-to-back wins on Sunday at the Suzuka Circuit following his success in China at the previous round, where he became the youngest Grand Prix winner in the process.
Having claimed pole in Japan, Antonelli suffered a terrible start and dropped as low as sixth on the opening lap before cycling back towards the front as McLaren and Ferrari pitted their drivers.
The crucial moment came approaching the mid-point of the 53-lap race, Mercedes team mate George Russell pitting from the lead just as a Safety Car was deployed following a heavy crash for Ollie Bearman.
The caution allowed new race leader Antonelli to make a pit stop and rejoin at the front of the field before romping to victory by nearly 14 seconds.
With Russell struggling for performance and being forced to settle for fourth at the chequered flag, Antonelli now leads the standings for the first time by 9 points after the opening three Grands Prix of the season.
"It feels pretty good. Of course it's still early days to think about the Championship but we're in a good way," said Antonelli post-race.
"In the race, had a terrible start, just need to check what happened but then I was lucky with the Safety Car to be in the lead but then the pace was just incredible and was a really nice second stint. I felt very good with the car and very pleased with that.
"I think we were obviously very lucky with the Safety Car but on the medium we were really strong once I got some clean air and then on the hard the pace was just incredible.
"I don't know what would have happened, what the outcome would have been without the Safety Car but definitely made my life a lot easier."
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| Antonelli leads the Drivers' Championship for the first time in his career |
With the Bahrain and Saudi Arabia races not taking place in April, there's a gap until the next race in Miami with teams set to bring significant upgrades to the American race.
Antonelli stated his focus would be on improving his starts, which have been sub-optimal compared with Mercedes' rivals throughout 2026 so far.
He said: "Luckily I've got three weeks so now I can practice some clutch drops just to get a better feel with it because definitely it has been a weak point so far this year and we need to improve that because you can easily win or lose races with that."
- F1
Wednesday, 11 February 2026
KIMI ANTONELLI INVOLVED IN A CAR CRASH BEFORE BAHRAIN TESTS
Kimi Antonelli was involved in a road accident in San Marino just days before the Bahrain Grand Prix weekend. The incident occurred while he was driving his AMG GT 63 PRO Motorsport Collectors Edition when the car hit safety barriers. The crash immediately raised concern given the timing.
According to reports Antonelli was checked by medical staff shortly after the incident. He was confirmed to be in good condition with no serious injuries. That confirmation quickly eased worries across the paddock and among fans.
Despite visible damage to the vehicle the driver himself escaped unharmed. Sources close to the situation stressed that this was a road incident and not related to any on track activity. The focus shifted quickly from speculation to recovery and readiness.
Most importantly Antonelli is expected to take part in the upcoming Bahrain tests as planned. Teams see this as a key phase for preparation and there is no indication that his schedule will change. His physical condition has been cleared with no restrictions.
The moment serves as a reminder of how quickly situations can change in motorsport. While the accident was serious enough to draw attention the outcome could have been far worse. For now Antonelli moves forward focused and ready for Bahrain.
- F1 Legacy
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