Andrea Kimi Antonelli’s march towards the 2026 Formula 1 title earned emphatic praise from Max Verstappen and Lando Norris after the Mercedes driver extended his championship lead over George Russell to 81 points with victory in Madrid. Norris was particularly impressed that the 20-year-old is outperforming a far more experienced team-mate, while Verstappen urged Antonelli not to change the approach that has carried him into such a commanding position.
Antonelli’s Spanish Grand Prix victory was his eighth of the season and his second in succession after Monza. With the Italian continuing to accumulate victories and podiums while Russell loses ground, the championship picture is becoming increasingly difficult for his rivals to reverse.
Kimi Antonelli builds an 81-point lead over George Russell
Sunday’s victory at the Madring increased Antonelli’s advantage over his closest championship rival, Mercedes team-mate George Russell, to 81 points. The latest gap can be seen in the 2026 Formula 1 Drivers’ Championship standings.
Such a margin with eight or nine Grands Prix potentially remaining, depending on the final status of the Qatar and Abu Dhabi rounds, leaves Antonelli with significant breathing room at the top of the championship.
The Italian continues to preach caution and has repeatedly insisted that he is approaching the season one race at a time. The numbers, however, are increasingly difficult to ignore. His Madrid victory added yet another achievement to a season in which Antonelli has already rewritten a remarkable collection of Formula 1 records.
Russell, meanwhile, has effectively acknowledged the scale of the task. After finishing fifth in Madrid, the British driver admitted he no longer realistically considers himself to be in the championship fight, with his focus shifting towards individual race victories.
Verstappen tells Antonelli not to overcomplicate his title charge
After the Madrid race, Antonelli shared the FIA press conference with the two most recent Formula 1 world champions, Max Verstappen and Lando Norris. Both were asked how the young Mercedes driver should handle the pressure of carrying such a large championship advantage so early in his career.
Antonelli jokingly suggested that they might still be hoping for a comeback. Verstappen quickly dismissed that idea from his own perspective.
“I’m definitely not having a comeback,” Max Verstappen said. “But no, I mean, Kimi just needs to do what he’s doing. I mean, it’s fantastic. So it’s working really well.”
The Red Bull driver believes Antonelli’s greatest strength at this stage is that he does not appear to be allowing the championship situation to change his behaviour.
“He should not stress about it too much, which I don’t think he is. He’s just delivering, he’s confident, he’s getting more and more experience.”
“He’s still young, he’s still very early in his career, but he’s flying and it’s just working. So he shouldn’t overcomplicate things. He’s not doing that. He has a lot of good people around him that know what he needs. So, it’s all working well.”
Verstappen’s comments underline how dramatically the championship has moved away from the rest of the field. Even the Red Bull driver, who has produced major late-season recoveries in the past, does not consider himself part of a realistic comeback this time.
Lando Norris highlights Antonelli’s advantage over George Russell
Norris offered a similarly glowing assessment, but also drew attention to what may be the most striking element of Antonelli’s campaign: his performance against Russell.
George Russell entered the season with considerably more Formula 1 experience and was widely considered one of the strongest candidates for the championship given Mercedes’ expected competitiveness. Instead, Antonelli has progressively established the clearer advantage inside the team.
“Max said it well. Like, he’s leading by 80 points because he’s doing an incredible job,” Norris said.
“You know, he’s beating a much more experienced team-mate, and a decent team-mate, so I don’t want to give him any advice because he’s doing a scarily good job at, you know, just turned 20. So yeah, pretty phenomenal.”
Norris’ comment was not an attack on Russell’s ability – he explicitly described the Mercedes driver as a strong team-mate – but the comparison emphasised the quality of Antonelli’s season.
Norris impressed by Antonelli’s lack of mistakes
The reigning world champion was equally impressed by the maturity Antonelli has shown despite being only in his second Formula 1 season.
“I think it’s cool to see someone so young doing such an incredible job and more than likely go on and win the championship,” Norris continued.
“He’s been impressive since the first race this year. Very few mistakes. He’s, you know, he’s just not driving like it’s his second year in F1, that’s for sure.”
The assessment reflects the consistency behind Antonelli’s championship advantage. His eight victories have been accompanied by 12 podiums from the opening 14 races, with Mercedes providing the strongest overall package of the new 2026 regulations.
An analysis of how dominant the Mercedes W17 has been in 2026 also shows the machinery Antonelli has at his disposal, but his advantage over Russell demonstrates how effectively he has used it.
Antonelli edges closer to a historic first F1 title
Norris expects the current Mercedes leader to complete the job if he maintains the same level over the remaining rounds.
“It’s cool to see and, yeah, I don’t want to… There’s going to be many, many more years of us battling and, yeah, I’m excited for more, hopefully this year, and I’m excited for all of us to race more in the future too. Looking forward to it.”
Antonelli himself remains determined not to think too far ahead. That mentality has already earned praise from figures including Vicky Piria, who highlighted the Mercedes driver’s increasingly mature championship mentality after his Madrid success.
The outside assessment, however, is becoming increasingly unanimous. Verstappen believes Antonelli simply needs to keep doing exactly what has brought him this far. Norris sees a 20-year-old producing a level of consistency and composure that bears little resemblance to that of a driver in only his second season.
With an 81-point advantage over Russell and eight victories already secured, Antonelli is moving closer to a historic first Formula 1 world championship with every passing Grand Prix.
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