Kimi Antonelli becomes the 23rd driver in F1 history to win three consecutive Grands Prix, and the first ever to do it from three consecutive pole positions at the start of his winning run.
May 3, 2026 | Miami International Autodrome | Formula Daily
Nothing about this weekend was easy for Kimi Antonelli. And that is exactly why this win matters more than the two before it.
The 18-year-old Mercedes driver arrived in Miami after a five-week break with a nine-point championship lead and back-to-back victories in China and Japan. What followed was 48 hours of problems. A botched start in Saturday’s Sprint caused by a team-side grip miscalculation. A five-second penalty for repeated track limit violations. A drop from P4 to P6 in the Sprint results. A championship lead trimmed from nine points to seven over George Russell.
Then came qualifying. Antonelli responded with a 1:27.798 in Q3 to take his third consecutive pole by over three tenths. He got too aggressive on his final attempt, braked too late, and knew the lap was gone before he even reached the apex. It did not matter. The first lap was enough. He walked into the press conference laughing about the Miami heat feeling like a “hairdresser in his face” (he meant hairdryer) and pointing out Shaquille O’Neal on the DJ booth.
If there is pressure on Antonelli, he is refusing to show it.
The Race: Chaos, Strategy, and a Gearbox That Tried to Quit
Sunday’s Grand Prix was moved three hours earlier to avoid incoming thunderstorms. The rain never came. The chaos did.
Off the line, Antonelli lost the lead again. Charles Leclerc and Max Verstappen both swamped him into Turn 1. Verstappen locked up, ran wide, spun at Turn 2, and dropped to P10. Leclerc squeezed through to lead. Antonelli was left fighting for position on a track where no driver had ever won from the front row.
On Lap 4, Antonelli attacked. He dived up the inside at Turn 17 and retook the lead. What followed was a three-way yo-yo battle with Leclerc and Lando Norris until a safety car on Lap 7 froze the field. The neutralization came after Isack Hadjar crashed out and Liam Lawson tipped Pierre Gasly upside down at Turn 17. Both incidents are under stewards’ investigation.
After the restart, Norris took the lead and held it. This is where Mercedes and Antonelli played the smarter game. Russell triggered the pit stop sequence on Lap 21. Leclerc followed on Lap 22. Antonelli came in on Lap 26, Norris one lap later. The undercut worked. Antonelli emerged ahead of Norris on the road, with the off-strategy Verstappen briefly leading before both passed him on Lap 29.
From that point, it was a two-driver race. Antonelli at the front. Norris within a second behind. And a Mercedes gearbox that started misbehaving.
Antonelli reported paddle shift issues mid-race. The gearbox was not responding cleanly. For a brief window, it looked like the door might swing open for Norris and McLaren. But Mercedes found a fix on the fly. Antonelli pulled away, managed track limits carefully after his Sprint weekend penalty, and held the gap.
He crossed the line first. Three wins. Three poles. 100 championship points.
What the Numbers Say
Antonelli is now the first driver to reach 100 points in the 2026 season. He leads Russell by 20 points (100 to 80) after Russell finished fourth. Leclerc sits third on 63. Norris, who took his first podium finish of the season in P2, moves to 51.
In the constructors’ standings, Mercedes leads with 180 points. Ferrari holds second on 112. McLaren is third with 94.
Antonelli joins Damon Hill and Mika Hakkinen as only the third driver in F1 history to win his first three career victories in succession. He is the 23rd driver overall to win three straight Grands Prix. Of the 22 who came before him, 20 went on to become World Champion.
The stat that stands alone? Antonelli is the first driver in F1 history to win his first three grands prix from his first three pole positions.
The Struggles That Define This Win
This was not a dominant cruise. The previous two victories at Shanghai and Suzuka saw Antonelli control races from the front with relative comfort. A 13-second winning margin in Japan. Clean starts. Clear air.
Miami was different. The start was poor again, a recurring problem that has now happened at every race in 2026. Mercedes boss Toto Wolff confirmed after the Sprint that the issue was on the team’s side, not Antonelli’s. A grip miscalculation left the W17 struggling off the line.
The track itself was hostile. Low grip. Extreme heat. Antonelli admitted the team had been struggling to find the right balance all weekend, and that rivals had closed the gap with significant upgrades during the April break. Red Bull’s pace in qualifying surprised even Mercedes. McLaren looked strongest on long runs.
Then the gearbox issues during the race. Then the track limit concerns after the Sprint penalty. Antonelli had to manage all of it while keeping a reigning world champion within DRS range behind him for over 25 laps.
He did it. At 18 years old.
What It Means
Before the Sprint, Antonelli told media that his goal for Miami was to return at the level he left Japan, or stronger. He talked about using the five-week break to reflect on what went well and where he could improve. He spent time on his home simulator. He did a Pirelli tyre test. He drove GT cars to stay sharp.
The result speaks for itself. Even when the car fought him, even when the start went wrong again, even when the competition closed in, Antonelli found a way.
Three races ago, the question was whether this teenager belonged at the front of F1. That question is settled. The new one? How long before the rest of the grid catches him.
Race Result (Top 10)
- Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes)
- Lando Norris (McLaren)
- Oscar Piastri (McLaren)
- George Russell (Mercedes)
- Max Verstappen (Red Bull)*
- Charles Leclerc (Ferrari)
- Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari)
- Franco Colapinto (Alpine)
- Carlos Sainz (Williams)
- Alex Albon (Williams)
*Verstappen under investigation for crossing the pit-exit line.
DNFs: Nico Hulkenberg (Audi, technical), Liam Lawson (Racing Bulls, crash), Pierre Gasly (Alpine, crash), Isack Hadjar (Red Bull, crash)
Next race: Canadian Grand Prix, May 24, 2026.
