Kimi Antonelli won the Miami Grand Prix for Mercedes on Sunday, beating Lando Norris after a late pit-stop battle and extending his lead in the drivers’ world championship. [1, 2]
The 19-year-old Italian took pole position on Saturday and turned it into a third straight win from his first three pole positions. He finished 3.264 seconds ahead of Norris. [2, 3]
Antonelli said Mercedes made the difference with strategy. "The team did a great strategy and we had a massive undercut — and I was able to bring it home. It was a tough race," he said. Norris agreed the key moment came in the pits. "We just got undercut. We should have boxed first, but Kimi did a good job and hats off to him and Mercedes," Norris said. [2]
The race began three hours earlier than scheduled because of expected heavy rainstorms. McLaren’s Norris had won the sprint race earlier in the Miami weekend, while Red Bull, McLaren and Ferrari brought upgrade packages to the circuit. [3, 4, 1, 2, 5]
Mercedes had dominated the opening three Grands Prix before Miami, and Antonelli’s victory kept the team at the front of the title fight. One report said he was 20 points ahead of Mercedes teammate George Russell after the race. Antonelli said after the win: "This is just the beginning. The road is still long." [2, 1]
