Kimi Antonelli was out of sight from Mercedes teammate George Russell as he clinched victory in Austin.

A dominant drive around the Circuit of the Americas has put Kimi Antonelli within touching distance of becoming Formula 1’s youngest-ever champion.

Antonelli started from pole and executed a brilliant one-stop strategy to claim his ninth career victory, one more than Russell has achieved.

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Toto Wolff left confused by gap between George Russell and Kimi Antonelli

Last year, Toto Wolff predicted Antonelli would be champion by 2030. The 20-year-old Italian is set to exceed expectations by four years.

Antonelli’s title charge certainly took many by surprise, including Russell, who was strongly considered the favourite heading into 2026. But there has been a stark difference between the two Mercedes teammates.

When Wolff was asked about the difference in performance between his drivers, which ended as a 54-second gap by the finish line, he told Sky Sports Germany: “We don’t know what the reason was.

“Kimi got past Leclerc relatively well, and George didn’t get past Piastri. Of course, they both have the same engine and use the same energy management strategy.”

Wolff could not speak highly enough of Antonelli after the race: “What a guy – unbelievable! He totally controlled the race and had incredible pace. He didn’t let anything throw him off his game. Niki would have taken his hat off to him.”

Kimi Antonelli’s 51-lap dominance shows extent of George Russell gap

Russell has been warned that Mercedes may prioritise Antonelli and build around his driving style in 2027, and it’s hard for the Briton to mount a defence when you look at results and the timing sheets.

“More stats from AWS, Kimi was faster than George on 51 of the 56 laps today. And Kimi’s fastest lap was almost nine-tenths faster than George’s,” said host Tom Clarkson.

Antonelli was quicker in both stints, on both sets of tyres, and extended his championship lead to 123 points.

Meanwhile, Russell finds himself looking at those beneath him as he tries to hold on to P2.