Antonelli can break Vettel’s youngest-champion record: ‘I was four years old’

Kimi Antonelli can break Sebastian Vettel’s record as Formula 1’s youngest world champion at the 2026 United States Grand Prix. Asked at a press conference during the Austin weekend whether he remembered Vettel’s title, the 20-year-old Mercedes driver said he did not: he was four and recalled playing with Hot Wheels. He later watched the race and described the title fight as very close.

Vettel won his first title at the 2010 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, aged 23, beating Fernando Alonso, Mark Webber and Lewis Hamilton in a four-way decider. Antonelli began the 2026 Austin weekend 102 points ahead of teammate George Russell. A win would secure the title if Russell finished outside the top eight and Hamilton outside the top four.

Antonelli said the progress of the 2026 season, how he felt in the car and the momentum had led him to believe he could fight for the championship. The timing would not change his approach, he said: he would keep aiming to be at the front and win as much as possible whenever he went on track, whether the title was decided in Austin, the following weekend or in Brazil.

He also praised Mercedes’s strong car and the team’s work to develop and understand its new package. Antonelli said the team had done everything in its power to give the drivers a good car and a chance to fight. He said he wanted to finish the season on a high and carry high hopes into next year.