MOTOR RACING: Kimi Antonelli wins Miami Grand Prix for third straight victory

MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. — Italian rookie Kimi Antonelli delivered another commanding performance on Sunday, winning the Miami Grand Prix from pole position for the third consecutive race to strengthen his lead in the Formula 1 drivers’ championship.

The 19-year-old briefly lost the lead to Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc on the opening lap but quickly reclaimed it before engaging in a close battle with McLaren’s Lando Norris. Antonelli ultimately retook control after Norris pitted from the lead around lap 28 of the 57-lap race and managed the remainder of the contest to secure victory.

The win follows back-to-back triumphs in China and Japan, giving Antonelli three career Formula 1 victories, all achieved in consecutive races. The Mercedes driver becomes only the third driver in F1 history to win his first three races in succession, joining Damon Hill and Mika Häkkinen.

“This is just the beginning; the road is still long,” Antonelli said. “We’re working extremely hard, and the team is doing an incredible job. Without them, I wouldn’t be here, and I also have to thank my family. I’ll enjoy this one, then get back to work because Canada is in two weeks.”

Antonelli is projected to extend his championship lead over Mercedes teammate George Russell to 20 points. His victory also helped Mercedes strengthen its position atop the constructors’ standings.

McLaren completed the podium with Norris finishing second and Oscar Piastri third. It marked Norris’ first podium of the season, though the Briton expressed frustration over team strategy after the race.

“How did we not win this? We should have won, guys,” Norris was heard saying over team radio.

“We got undercut—no excuses other than that. We should have boxed first. Kimi did a good job. Credit to Mercedes and Kimi; they drove a strong race,” Norris added. “I’m gutted to miss out on a win here in Miami, but there wasn’t enough pace to get past him in the end. Still, it’s a positive weekend overall.”

Leclerc’s race unraveled in dramatic fashion on the final lap when he spun but avoided the wall. The mistake dropped him from fourth to sixth as George Russell and Max Verstappen moved ahead.

The race was also marked by chaos at the start, when Verstappen spun 360 degrees from second on the grid, allowing Leclerc to surge from third to first. Verstappen recovered to finish strongly, recording his best result of the season.

However, Russell, Verstappen and Leclerc were all summoned by the FIA for post-race investigations. Verstappen was noted for allegedly crossing the pit exit line, Russell was involved in a reported late-race collision with Verstappen, and Leclerc faced scrutiny for multiple infractions, including leaving the track and gaining an advantage.

Antonelli also revealed he struggled with a gearbox-related issue during the race, later confirmed by Mercedes as a connectivity problem affecting his steering wheel. Despite the technical setback, he emphasized his focus on early-race mistakes.

“I didn’t expect Charles to brake that early, so I locked up to avoid him,” Antonelli said. “I was lucky with what happened with Max in Turn 2. I made a small mistake with energy management while trying to overtake Charles, which cost me a position to Lando. But the pace was strong, and the team executed a great strategy. The undercut worked well, and we brought it home even though it wasn’t easy.”

The race start time was moved up three hours to 1 p.m. local time to avoid forecast thunderstorms.

— Field Level Media/Reuters