Kimi Antonelli Insists Formula 1 Title Race Is Not Over Yet as He Holds Commanding 81 Point Lead

• Kimi Antonelli says his 81 point championship lead is “not over until it’s over” heading into the Azerbaijan Grand Prix.
• The Mercedes driver has taken eight wins and four further podiums this season, but is wary of McLaren and Red Bull closing in at Baku.
• Antonelli says he allows himself to think about the title only to conclude he needs to keep driving and delivering results.

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Antonelli Refuses to Call the Title Race Done

Kimi Antonelli holds an 81 point lead at the top of the Drivers’ Championship, the biggest advantage anyone has held all season, yet the Mercedes driver is refusing to treat the title as settled going into the Azerbaijan Grand Prix.

The 20 year old has taken eight Grand Prix wins and four further podiums in 2026, building a gap over his own Mercedes teammate George Russell that has grown wider with almost every round. Antonelli’s answer, when asked directly about that lead, was to play down how close the finish line really is.

One Race at a Time, Like Tennis

“It’s not over until it’s over,” Antonelli said. “Until you cross that finish line, it’s not over. It’s like tennis, one point at a time, here one race at a time.”

He described a mental process that keeps circling back to the same conclusion, whatever the temptation to look ahead. “Keep giving your best and keep trying to raise that bar, keep delivering results and see where we end up at the end of the year,” he said. “As we’re getting closer, I’ve thought about the championship and stuff, but by thinking about it I’ve always come to the final conclusion that I need to keep driving like I am and delivering the results.”

“The sooner it’s over, the better it is,” he added. “Still a long way and it’s not going to be easy. It’s going to be intense but I’m ready to give my best and to keep having fun.”

A Rival Who Has Already Conceded

Antonelli’s closest challenger on paper is Russell, but even his own teammate has stopped pretending the fight is close. Antonelli’s own win in Madrid pushed his lead to its season high, and afterwards Russell admitted he is “not in the fight for the drivers’ title.” Ferrari’s Lewis Hamilton and McLaren’s Lando Norris sit further back still, both more than 100 points off the pace.

Antonelli has scored 292 points so far this season, a total built through consistency as much as outright speed. His eight wins are six more than any other driver has managed in 2026, a gap that explains why so many in the paddock now discuss the championship in terms of when, rather than if, it will be settled in his favor.

Baku Brings Its Own Complications

Antonelli, even with his commanding position, was careful not to assume Baku’s Azerbaijan Grand Prix would play into Mercedes’ hands. He narrowly missed out on a podium to Williams’ Carlos Sainz at the same circuit last season, and knows McLaren and Red Bull have both closed the gap to Mercedes in the year that followed.

“I think it could be a good track for us but if McLaren have the upperhand, or Red Bull with Max, or even with Isack, then it might be one of those weekends where you have to be satisfied with maybe a podium or a P4,” Antonelli said. “Of course the goal is always to win but we’ll see.”

He also pointed to the unforgiving nature of a street circuit where small errors carry big consequences. “You have no margin for mistakes, or very little, and it’s going to be important to build up throughout the weekend, and to squeeze everything out of the car when it counts,” he said. “Always keep that tiny margin in case something happens. It is a cool track, very challenging. Hopefully we’re going to be fast.”

The Season’s Biggest Test of Patience

Baku is the first of three races in as many weekends, with Malaysia and Singapore to follow before the championship enters its final stretch. There are 83 points on offer across the triple header alone, and Antonelli’s approach suggests he intends to treat each one as its own contest rather than a lap of honor.

For a driver on course to become Formula 1’s youngest ever world champion, the message from Antonelli himself remains strikingly modest: nothing is decided until the final lights go out somewhere far beyond Baku.

Wolff Warns of “Black Swan Events”

Antonelli’s caution echoes language his own team boss has used throughout the season. Mercedes principal Toto Wolff has repeatedly stressed that an 81 point cushion counts for little if something goes wrong that nobody saw coming.

“There are black swan events, they can come and you’re losing something out of your hand when you didn’t think it was possible to lose,” Wolff has said. “So, he’s not going to think about it.”

Wolff has also defended Antonelli’s insistence that the title is not on his mind on a race weekend, calling it a genuine approach rather than a line fed to reporters. “I promise you he’s not thinking about it,” Wolff said. “The way this kid is able to compartmentalise and be the young kid and then get into the car and be the mature racing driver. That’s why if Kimi says to himself, I’m not thinking about the championship, he’s not thinking about the championship.”

The People Keeping Him Grounded

Antonelli has credited the people around him, rather than any particular mindset technique, for helping him treat every weekend the same way regardless of the size of his lead. He singled out his father, Marco, as a steadying presence through a season that has turned him into a title favourite at just 20 years old.

“I’m lucky to have really good people around me,” he said. “I have an incredible team that supports me, great family. Especially my dad is the one that keeps me on the ground. Definitely having good people helps a lot.”

He returned to the same point when asked how he squares a runaway championship lead with staying motivated for every session. “I don’t want to overcomplicate things, just drive worrying about championship or result,” he said. “Just driving, doing my best.”

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More F1 Reading

• Lewis Hamilton Admits Chasing George Russell, Not Kimi Antonelli, Is Now His Real Championship Battle
• Liam Lawson Downplays His Red Bull Super Sub Stint as He Returns to Racing Bulls for the Azerbaijan GP
• Nico Rosberg Says Ferrari’s Real Problem Is Not Pace but “Messy Weekends” as Vasseur Demands Better Execution in Baku
• Esteban Ocon Declares Himself a “Free Agent” as Haas Weighs His Formula 1 Future for 2027

Written by

Jack Renn

Jack Renn is an editor at F1 Chronicle and a veteran motorsport journalist with 25 years of experience covering Formula 1 and international motorsport. A member of the Association Internationale de la Presse Sportive (AIPS), the global body representing accredited sports journalists, Jack has spent his career reporting from paddocks and press rooms across the F1 calendar. His work spans race analysis, technical insight, and in-depth features, giving readers authoritative coverage grounded in decades of firsthand experience at the highest level of the sport.

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