Antonelli wins United States GP with controlled drive in Austin

Kimi Antonelli won the 2026 United States Grand Prix on October 25 in Austin, leading from the opening lap and controlling the race to the finish ahead of Charles Leclerc and Max Verstappen.

Antonelli takes command early

Antonelli started strongly and kept the lead as the field settled into the race at Circuit of The Americas. According to the Formula 1 recap, Verstappen had a poor start, which helped Antonelli keep position at the front and build an early advantage.

From there, Antonelli stayed calm and made his strategy work. He began on medium tyres and later switched to hard tyres, running the rest of the race without a second stop. That approach proved decisive even as other front-runners took a different path.

• Winner: Kimi Antonelli
• Second: Charles Leclerc
• Third: Max Verstappen
• Location: Austin, United States
• Race date: October 25, 2026

Strategy shapes the result

According to the official race report, many of Antonelli’s rivals stopped twice, while he and his team committed to a one-stop plan. That meant he had to manage tyre wear carefully over a long middle and final stint, but the choice gave him track position when it mattered most.

A Virtual Safety Car near the end slowed the field before the final lap, but it did not threaten Antonelli’s lead. He finished 13.078 seconds ahead of Leclerc, with Verstappen 17.485 seconds behind the winner.

The result was Antonelli’s ninth Grand Prix victory of the season, strengthening his position in the Drivers’ Championship fight according to the source. The report says the victory kept him in pursuit of the title.

Key positions and race fallout

Leclerc’s late move put him into second place, while Verstappen completed the podium. Lewis Hamilton finished fourth and Lando Norris came home fifth.

The source also says George Russell finished eighth, while Liam Lawson and Pierre Gasly took the final points-paying places. There were retirements for Franco Colapinto, Ollie Bearman and Valtteri Bottas, with Bottas stopping on track and triggering the Virtual Safety Car.

For ordinary fans, the result matters because it tightened the picture at the front of the championship and showed how much race strategy can decide a Grand Prix. Antonelli’s win came not just from pace, but from a clean start, good tyre management and a plan that held together to the end.

What Antonelli said

After the race, Antonelli said, “It was the result we needed.” He added that the team’s hard work on the new package had paid off and praised the strategy execution, according to the official Formula 1 recap.

The race also set up the next stop on the calendar, with the paddock heading on to the Mexico City Grand Prix.

Source: F1