First match point in Austin: Antonelli can be crowned world champion on Sunday
Mercedes driver Kimi Antonelli heads to Texas with a 102-point lead. If he wins and Russell finishes no higher than ninth, the 20-year-old clinches the title early.
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Kimi Antonelli has his first chance to wrap up the Formula 1 world championship early at the United States Grand Prix in Austin. After 17 of 23 rounds, the Mercedes driver leads on 340 points from team-mate George Russell (238), Lewis Hamilton (229), Max Verstappen (221) and Charles Leclerc (215). According to The National, none of the six remaining Grands Prix features a Sprint, leaving 150 points on the table. The race at the Circuit of the Americas starts on Sunday at 20:00 GMT.
To seal the title in Texas, Antonelli must win the race while Russell finishes ninth or lower and Hamilton fifth or lower, Formula1.com calculates. A win for Antonelli would end the hopes of Verstappen, Leclerc and Lando Norris. If it does not happen on Sunday, his next chance comes in Mexico City on 1 November. The Italian has won eight Grands Prix in 2026 and finished on the podium six more times.
Antonelli himself is playing it down. "It would be a dream. It's something I've dreamt of since I was little," he told Formula1.com. "For me [it] needs to be a perfect weekend and the others, they need to do a poor result, which is unlikely to happen." His rivals were full of praise at Thursday's press conference: Oscar Piastri called him "a very deserving champion", according to the FIA transcript, while Hamilton said: "I'm so proud of him."