Kimi Antonelli now leads the Drivers’ Championship after winning the Japanese Grand Prix. The Mercedes driver took the chequered flag ahead of Oscar Piastri and Charles Leclerc.
Antonelli’s Commanding Drive at Suzuka
Kimi Antonelli sealed victory at the Japanese Grand Prix. The Italian became the youngest-ever championship leader after a commanding drive to claim his second consecutive win. He finished ahead of Oscar Piastri and Charles Leclerc following an earlier Safety Car.
Piastri made a stunning start when the lights went out at the Suzuka Circuit, seizing the lead into Turn 1. However, the Mercedes cars slipped backwards. The Silver Arrows pair soon embarked on a recovery drive.
George Russell challenged Piastri for the lead but could not make a move stick.
Safety Car Shuffles the Pack
As drivers started making pit stops, including Piastri and Russell, a heavy crash for Haas’ Ollie Bearman brought out the Safety Car on Lap 22. Antonelli, who was yet to pit and provisionally in the lead, was able to pit and reemerge in P1.
From there, the youngster executed a smooth restart to hold onto P1. He built a significant gap, crossing the line with a margin of 13.722s over Piastri. The win moved him into the lead of the Drivers’ Championship, making him the youngest driver in history to head the standings.
Piastri and Leclerc on the Podium
Piastri recorded his first race finish of the season in style. The Australian took McLaren’s debut podium of the campaign with his P2 result. Leclerc fended off a chasing Russell to seal the final spot on the rostrum in third.
Russell settled for fourth, having earlier voiced his frustration at the timing of the Safety Car. Lando Norris claimed fifth following a close scrap with Lewis Hamilton in the latter stages, with Hamilton finishing sixth.
Pierre Gasly was seventh for Alpine, defending hard against Max Verstappen. The Red Bull man finished just 0.337s behind in eighth, while Liam Lawson and Esteban Ocon rounded out the top 10.
Nico Hulkenberg just missed out on points in 11th, ahead of Isack Hadjar in 12th and Gabriel Bortoleto in 13th. Arvid Lindblad claimed 14th, ahead of Carlos Sainz and Franco Colapinto in 15th and 16th respectively.
Sergio Perez was P17, with Fernando Alonso, Valtteri Bottas and Alex Albon completing the classification. Albon recorded a total of six pit stops in the race.
Lance Stroll retired due to a suspected water pressure issue. Bearman’s crash put him out of the running, though the Haas team fortunately later reported that the.
- Kimi Antonelli won the Japanese Grand Prix.
- Oscar Piastri finished second.
- Charles Leclerc completed the podium in third.
Antonelli’s victory moves him into the lead of the Drivers’ Championship.