Kimi Antonelli is a step away from the title: can the Italian become the youngest champion of Formula 1

Kimi Antonelli is on the verge of winning the Formula 1 title, but the twenty-year-old Mercedes driver may have to celebrate his historic victory in a week or two. The Italian has every chance to become the youngest champion in the history of royal racing and the first representative of his country to win the championship in the last seventy-three years. However, in order to realize the first match point at the stage in Texas next Sunday, the pilot must not only win, but also hope for a coincidence.

Recalling that four-time champion Sebastian Vettel in 2010 at the age of 23 years became the youngest at that time triumphant in the composition of Red Bull, experts draw attention to the impressive advantage of Antonelli. Before the US Grand Prix in Austin, the Italian is ahead of his teammate George Russell by 102 points. With a maximum of 125 points remaining after the race at the Circuit of the Americas, Antonelli, who is spending his second season in Formula 1, will secure an early title if the gap increases by 23 points.

Only victory can guarantee such an advantage, but even in this case, the Italian will need Russell to finish no higher than ninth place, and seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton, playing for Ferrari, fell not below fifth position. Otherwise, the wait for the title, which will make Antonelli the first Italian champion since Alberto Ascari in 1953, will last at least until the next stage in Mexico City.

The driver himself admits that he is aware of the intensity of the fight and the proximity of victory, but retains the usual mood, which is to go on the track, win and demonstrate the maximum result. The driver said these words after finishing in third position in Singapore, which became his fourteenth podium this season.

In the Mercedes team, the chances of the title in Austin are extremely low. Deputy Team Principal Bradley Lord noted that at this stage of the season, talking about match point creates a certain awkward tension. According to him, the probability of winning the cup in Texas is about one in 25, so the main task of engineers remains to find the optimal settings of the machine to score the maximum number of points. This task is complicated by the fact that Russell in Singapore was in an accident during the sprint, and in the main race started from the last position due to a fine for replacing the engine.

Despite the fact that Antonelli won eight of the seventeen past stages, the sports initiative is intercepted by four-time world champion Max Verstappen. The Red Bull driver, who won the last two races in Malaysia and Singapore, as well as the winner of last year’s stage in Austin, starts from pole position. Russell notes that in recent races Red Bull showed excellent speed, dominating on completely different tracks, including Baku, where Verstappen was about the same level as himself. Verstappen himself, who is 119 points behind Antonelli, says that the pressure to fight for the championship has subsided and now intends to simply enjoy the remaining races.

Both Mercedes drivers will receive the latest package of technical upgrades, which will be applied in the first of three consecutive stages in Texas, Mexico and Brazil. Similar improvements have been made at McLaren. The reigning world champion Lando Norris, who finished second in Austin last year, and Charles Leclerc, who became third, are again going to compete for the victory. McLaren technical director Rob Marshall expressed confidence that the team is overcoming recent difficulties and returning to optimal shape, and the track in Austin is better suited to their car. We should not discount Lewis Hamilton, whose historical results on the roads of the United States are unparalleled.

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In addition to the main fight for the championship, the weekend in Texas will be marked by an unusual event. On Saturday, four MotoGP racers will take to the track for demonstration runs. This was made possible by the fact that the ring racing and motorcycle championship are owned by one American company Liberty Media.