Mercedes boss Toto Wolff described Kimi Antonelli’s run of form as “astounding” after the 19-year-old secured his third successive Formula 1 victory with a mature drive to win the Miami Grand Prix on Sunday. Wolff called the Miami performance Antonelli’s best yet.
Antonelli became just the third driver in F1 history to record his first three wins in consecutive races, recovering from losing the lead off pole to undercut McLaren’s Lando Norris at the only pit stop and then holding off the reigning world champion. The result extended his lead at the top of the drivers’ championship to 20 points over team-mate George Russell, who had been expected to lead Mercedes under the new regulations for 2026.
“It’s astounding these few races,” Wolff said. “In a way, what we predicted as a team, that we would have ups and downs last season, moments of brilliance, moments where you want to tear your hair out. And this year, it’s coming together. I don’t think that any of us would have expected this kind of run. To give him a car that is very good, an engine that is right. But how he’s been able to monetise on that every single weekend is special.”
Antonelli endured a mixed rookie campaign last year but appears to have taken a significant step forward and is now favoured by UK bookmakers for the Drivers’ Championship. For the sixth time in as many events this season, including two Sprints, he lost places at the start but managed another composed strategic drive in Miami.
“For me, it was his best race so far,” Wolff added. “It reminds me of his karting days and Formula 4. There were no mistakes.”
Fast-tracked into F1 as Mercedes prepared to replace Lewis Hamilton after his move to Ferrari, Antonelli’s promotion drew scrutiny when he struggled mid-2025. He insists he did not expect to be leading the championship at this stage but says growing confidence is helping him extract more from the car.
“I did not expect it,” Antonelli said. “And yeah, I mean we’re living such a good moment, but as I said before, it’s still a very long season and there’s so many things that can change. George, for sure, is going to be super strong in Canada. He’s always been very strong there, so he’s for sure going to be at the top. But I feel much more comfortable in the car, much more in control as well, and I think we’re just going to keep trying our best. I’m going to try to maximise every time I go on track but let’s see how Canada will be, hopefully we can repeat ourselves like this weekend, but we’ll see how the upgrades work. I’m really proud of the job the team are doing and I’m really enjoying the journey.”
Russell attributed his Miami struggles to a dislike of the track; the season continues in three weeks at Montreal, a circuit where he has previously excelled.
Wolff warned that managing the attention on Antonelli will be important, likening the pressure to that on tennis star Jannik Sinner. Antonelli’s three wins coincided with Sinner’s victories in Indian Wells, Miami and Madrid, and Wolff noted the intense spotlight from the Italian public.
“The easiest bit is making sure that he keeps both feet on the ground within the team, his parents have done a great job in keeping him grounded,” Wolff said. “The bigger problem is the Italian public. Now that they are not qualifying for football it is all about Sinner and Antonelli. I think Sinner won in Madrid so it is the two superstars and that is something that we need to contain. There are so many requests for his time. It’s on us to keep the handbrake on that. We just really need to stay calm here because such success for such a young man at this stage, all of Italy will be on him.”
Formula 1 next heads to Montreal for the Canadian Grand Prix and another Sprint weekend.