Havana, October 26 (RHC) – Italian Andrea Kimi Antonelli won the Formula One United States Grand Prix and moved closer to his world championship title, after securing his ninth victory of the season.
With the composure of a veteran and the ambition of a champion, the Mercedes driver dominated the race at the Circuit of the Americas, turning the 56 laps into another demonstration of his authority over his pursuers.
Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc of Monaco finished second after overtaking Red Bull’s Max Verstappen of the Netherlands in the decisive stages. Verstappen completed the podium after an intense battle for the remaining positions.
The winner’s celebration came within a hair’s breadth of becoming a championship party, but the eighth-place finish of his teammate, Briton George Russell, kept the fight for the crown alive.
Antonelli extended his lead over Russell to 123 points and will arrive at the next race in Mexico with the possibility of securing the title by finishing in the top nine.
His superiority was also evident in his strategy, as he delayed his only pit stop until lap 25, fitted hard tires, and maintained a pace that his rivals couldn’t break.
At 20 years old, the championship leader aims to become the youngest world champion in history and to return to Italy a drivers’ title that it has not won since Alberto Ascari in 1953.
