20-year-old rising star Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes) has secured his ninth win of the season at the 2026 Formula One (F1) United States Grand Prix, moving to the brink of his first-ever drivers' championship.

Antonelli crossed the finish line first in the final of the 18th round of the 2026 F1 Championship, held at the Circuit of the Americas (5.513 km, 56 laps) in Austin, Texas, with a time of 1 hour, 35 minutes, and 16.650 seconds. He defeated Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) by a margin of 13.078 seconds to claim victory.

Max Verstappen (Red Bull) took third place.

Having topped both the qualifying session and the final to achieve a "pole-to-win," Antonelli recorded his ninth victory of the season.

With 365 points in the drivers' standings this season, he widened his lead over second-place teammate George Russell (242 points) to 123 points.

He is 124 points ahead of Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari, 241 points).

As a result, Antonelli can secure the drivers' championship early at the 19th round Mexican GP final on November 2 (KST) if neither Russell nor Hamilton wins the race.

Even if Russell wins the Mexican GP, Antonelli needs only to finish 9th to claim the championship, and even if Hamilton wins, finishing 10th will be enough to secure the throne, putting him in an advantageous position.

(Photo: Getty Images)