Antonelli scores first
Kimi Antonelli, 19, grabbed his maiden F1 win at the Chinese GP — a landmark for Mercedes and one of the weekend’s biggest headlines. The result has fans re-sorting youngest-winner lists while Verstappen/McLaren endured a tough weekend with visible team radio tension. (x.com) (x.com)
Antonelli set a new qualifying milestone in Shanghai by becoming the youngest driver ever to take pole position for a Grand Prix. (mercedesamgf1.com)) He retook the lead before the end of lap two and completed his only pit stop under the race’s sole Safety Car, then controlled the running through the closing 30 laps. (formula1.com)) The 56-lap race finished with a 1:33:15.607 official time and a 5.515-second margin to the next classified Mercedes, underlining how the leading duo pulled clear of the field. (formula1.com)) George Russell had taken Saturday’s Sprint and remains the Drivers’ Championship leader after the Shanghai weekend. (silverstone.co.uk)) Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff called the podium scenes “one of the best moments” of his F1 career and described being overwhelmed by the celebrations. (formula1.com)) McLaren were hit by a rare double DNS when both Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri were prevented from starting by separate electrical faults on their Mercedes-supplied power units, prompting a joint investigation with Mercedes HPP. (mclaren.com)) Max Verstappen retired with a loss of power around ten laps from the end, and untelevised team radio later revealed a tense exchange with race engineer GianPiero Lambiase about energy management and the driver’s frustrations. (formula1.com))
