Kimi Antonelli not only won his first Formula 1 world championship. The Italian Mercedes driver had a historic season that made him the youngest champion of all time and allowed him to set several records that reflect the dimension of his achievement.
At just 20 years old, Antonelli became the thirty-sixth champion in the history of the premier category of motorsport and ended a 73-year wait for Italy, in addition to reaching records that had not been seen for several decades.
These are some of the main marks he achieved with his first world crown:
The youngest champion in history
Antonelli established a new record for precocity by becoming the youngest Formula 1 world champion. At 20 years old, he surpassed the mark that belonged to the German Sebastian Vettel, who was 23 when he won his first crown in 2010 with Red Bull.
In addition, the Italian became the first champion of the category born in the 21st century, a fact that confirms the generational change that Formula 1 is beginning to experience.
Italy has a champion again after 73 years
Antonelli’s consecration also ended a long drought for Italian motorsport. Since Alberto Ascari, champion in 1952 and 1953, no driver of that nationality had won the world title.
In this way, Italy once again has a representative at the top of the classification after more than seven decades. A wait that ended thanks to the talent of one of the youngest drivers on the grid.
First victory and first championship in the same season
Another of Antonelli’s notable records is having achieved his first Grand Prix victory and his first world championship during the same season.
The last driver who had achieved that combination was the Finnish Keke Rosberg, who won his first race and the title in 1982. However, both followed different paths: Rosberg achieved that crown with a single victory, while Antonelli reached his consecration after accumulating nine wins in the 2026 championship.
The first to win the title in his first two seasons since Hamilton
Antonelli also followed in the footsteps of Lewis Hamilton, precisely the driver he replaced at Mercedes when the Briton left for Ferrari in 2025.
The Italian became the first driver since Hamilton to win a world championship during his first two seasons in Formula 1. The Briton won his first crown in 2008, after falling just short in his extraordinary debut campaign.
Antonelli, for his part, had a different journey. After a difficult first season, in which he failed to fully meet expectations, he took a leap in quality in his second year to become the benchmark on the grid.
Biggest comeback in the standings since 2009
Antonelli’s evolution was also reflected in the results. The Italian finished seventh in the drivers’ championship during his debut season, but a year later he climbed to first position to win the crown.
That jump of six places represents the greatest progression in the classification of a driver during a season in which he ended up being crowned champion since 2009.
On that occasion, the British Jenson Button won his only world title after having finished in 18th place in the standings the previous year, when he was still competing with Honda.
With these records, Antonelli not only secured his place among the big names in Formula 1, but also confirmed that the future of the category has a new protagonist.
