Antonelli wins chaotic Miami Grand Prix to stretch championship lead

Charles Leclerc will be making his way to the stewards for driving his Ferrari in an “unsafe condition” on that last lap. It would be very, very harsh to give Leclerc a penalty in my humble opinion.

08:07pm

A bit of history!

08:03pm

Oscar Piastri, who finished third

“It has not been the most straightforward of weekends. Qualifying yesterday was a bit messy for both of us, but the pace seemed more encouraging today. I had to make a few overtakes at the end of the race. It was a pretty late charge, but it is very tricky around here, especially in these conditions, so thanks to the team. Clearly we are a step closer in performance once again, so that is nice to see. This weekend we showed if we get track position we can hang on to things well. We were close in Japan, but we have definitely taken a step forward and hopefully in Canada we can take another step forward again. Excited for the future.”

Oscar Piastri came through from seventh on the grid to take third - Andy Hone/LAT Images

08:00pm

Thoughts of Lando Norris, who finished second

“A mixed bag, really. We just got undercut; no excuses other than that. We got undercut, we should have boxed first. Kimi [Antonelli] did a good job. Hats off to Mercedes and Kimi, they drove a good race. Easy to make mistakes out there with the big braking zones and with these cars but he did not make any big enough for me to capitalise on. So I have to be happy, I think as a team I think we have to be happy. I am gutted to miss out on a win here in Miami, I think it was possible today. But not the pace to get past him in the end, so we take it on the chin. But it is still a positive weekend all together.”

Lando Norris could well have taken victory today - Rudy Carezzevoli/Getty Images

07:57pm

Race winner Kimi Antonelli

“The start was not as bad as yesterday, it was a bit better. I did not expect Charles [Leclerc] to brake that early, so to avoid him I locked up. I was a bit lucky with what happened in Turn Two [with Max Verstappen spinning] then I did a little mistake with the energy management, trying to overtake Charles, then I lost a place to Lando [Norris]. Then the pace was strong. I was able to stay close. The team did a great strategy. We did a massive undercut and we managed to bring it home even though it was not easy.”

On making history by becoming the first driver to convert his first three pole positions into wins:

“This is just the beginning. The road is still long. We are working super hard and the team is doing an incredible job. Without them, I would not be here, so thanks to them and my family. I am going to enjoy this one then get back to work.”

Kimi Antonelli leads the championship by 20 points - Peter Fox/Getty Images

07:52pm

Top five in the constructors’ standings

1. Mercedes- 180pts
2. Ferrari- 112pts
3. McLaren- 94pts
4. Red Bull- 30pts
5. Alpine- 21pts

07:48pm

Top five in the drivers’ standings after four race weekends

1. Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes) - 100pts
2. George Russell (Mercedes) - 80pts
3. Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) - 63pts
4. Lando Norris (McLaren) - 51pts
5. Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari) - 49pts

07:45pm

A frustrated Lando Norris

“How did we not win this? We should have won guys. Good try, good effort. Nice to see the progress. Well done, let’s keep pushing guys. We can get back to winning, we can make it easier for ourselves.”

The world champion looked comfortable out in front during the front stint but Mercedes brought Antonelli in for a pit stop before Norris and got the undercut done. How much will McLaren regret that?

07:42pm

Final top five

1. Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes)
2. Lando Norris (McLaren)
3. Oscar Piastri (McLaren)
4. George Russell (Mercedes)
5. Max Verstappen (Red Bull)*

*That will be subject to an investigation on the Dutchman, who could get a five-second penalty after crossing the white line at the pit exit, which would promote Charles Leclerc into fifth.

07:39pm Key moments • Video

Kimi Antonelli wins the 2026 Miami Grand Prix

The young Italian extends his lead at the top of the championship by taking victory ahead of Norris. Piastri comes home in the final podium position.

Russell has caught up to Leclerc and gets the move done before turn 17. The two do touch at that corner but Russell gets the move done. Leclerc is trying to hold on but also gets passed by Verstappen just before the line. It was a crazy start to the race and now a crazy end.

07:37pm

Lap 57 of 57

Piastri has got the move done on Leclerc before turn 17 and takes P3 as Antonelli starts the final lap.

Leclerc has spun! He has gone around at turn two and his front left has hit the wall. Can he survive for the rest of this lap?

07:36pm

Lap 56 of 57

Piastri is right behind Leclerc but has to stay behind for now. Behind Verstappen and Russell are swapping positions.

Norris is told over team radio that he has a problem with his rear wing.

07:35pm

Lap 55 of 57

It is safe to say Verstappen and Russell are not good friends and it is a great battle between the pair. Russell thinks about a move at turn 17 but instead leaves it to turn one. Russell looks like he will get the move done at turn one but Verstappen keeps the place. The pair have seemingly touched though as Russell has damage to his front wing and Verstappen thinks his tyre made contact with Russell.

07:33pm

Lap 54 of 57

There are two battles to keep an eye on right now. Leclerc and Piastri for the final podium spot whilst Verstappen and Russell are battling for fifth and sixth. Verstappen could end up with a penalty after the race for an infringement earlier in the race.

07:30pm

Lap 53 of 57

As we get closer to the end and Antonelli looking like he might bring it home for the win, McLaren will be wondering on the pit wall whether they should have brought Norris in earlier. All ifs, buts and maybes though.

Behind Piastri is within two seconds of Leclerc for the final podium spot.

07:28pm

Lap 52 of 57

Top five with gaps:

1. Antonelli (Interval)
2. Norris +2.0
3. Leclerc +22.0
4. Piastri +2.1
5. Verstappen +4.0

07:24pm

Lap 49 of 57

Antonelli is reporting problems with the downshifts. He has spent a fair amount of this race reporting issues on his car but none have been remotely terminal.

Piastri is now right behind Verstappen and gets the move done up the inside of turn 17 to take fourth place.

07:22pm

Lap 48 of 57

Antonelli is told by his team that he now has a few warnings for track limits and needs to be careful. He holds a two-second advantage over Norris, who was hot on those track limits by Antonelli.

Behind Leclerc has been closing in on Verstappen and gets the move done up the inside of turn one to take third. However, Verstappen is not done there and takes third place back around the outside of turn four with a great move. The places keep switching as Leclerc retakes third before turn 11 and Verstappen thinks about a move up the inside but does not do so. Piastri is now closing in behind.

07:18pm

Lap 45 of 57

Antonelli was under big pressure from Norris for quite some time but just seems to have wrestled back a little bit of control. Will McLaren regret not pitting Norris slightly earlier? Norris looked comfortable out in front in the first stint but Mercedes got the undercut done on McLaren by bringing Antonelli in a lap earlier than Norris.

Further behind, Leclerc is closing in on Verstappen, whose hard tyres are nearly 40 laps old.

07:15pm Analysis

Lap 43 of 57

Things have calmed down a bit now but I’m still having trouble with all this passing and repassing. For all the action, it’s curiously flat. Maybe that’s because it’s difficult to draw any real conclusions. It’s hard to give credit to drivers in these regs when they’re all deploying their boosts at different times.

07:11pm

Lap 41 of 57

Top five with gaps:

1. Antonelli (Interval)
2. Norris +0.8
3. Verstappen +13.0
4. Leclerc +4.7
5. Piastri +3.8

Verstappen stopped very early, inside the first 10 laps, so will have to take these hard tyres a long, long way but that you would imagine is the plan for Red Bull.

07:08pm

Lap 38 of 57

Antonelli tells his team he feels the rears have gone as the championship leader is under big pressure from the defending world champion Norris. There is a one-lap difference in tyres between this pair, with Antonelli coming in a lap before Norris which allowed him to execute the undercut.

Who will take victory in Miami? - Rudy Carezzevoli/Getty Images

07:05pm

Lap 37 of 57

Unless there is some dramatic rain between now and the end of the race, it will be a two-horse race for the win between Antonelli and Norris. There is under a second between those two.

07:03pm

Lap 35 of 57

Antonelli has complained over team radio about his gearbox but it does not appear to be effecting him too much. His teammate Russell is under huge pressure in fifth from Piastri but the Australian has been unable to make the move quite yet.

Piastri thinks about a move around the outside at turn 17 as Russell covers the inside line. Piastri thinks better of it and instead eyes up a move into turn one, which he executes with an overtake on the inside. However, Russell retakes fifth place with a move up the inside of turn 11.

The action does not stop there though as Piastri takes fifth back before turn 17.

06:59pm

Lap 32 of 57

Top five with gaps:

1. Antonelli (Interval)
2. Norris +1.1
3. Verstappen +45.4
4. Leclerc +8.0
5. Russell +1.8

06:58pm

Lap 31 of 57

Piastri was the last of the frontrunners to come in but is showing good pace on his new hard tyres. His stop was a touch slow but is just a second off the Leclerc/Russell battle.

06:55pm Key moments

Lap 29 of 57

As McLaren bring Piastri in, Verstappen, Antonelli and Norris are now fighting for first, second and third. Norris nearly gets the move done on Antonelli into turn one but the Italian holds firm.

Antonelli is now eyeing up Verstappen and gets the move done into turn 11. Norris is stuck behind Verstappen through the tight turns of 13, 14, 15 and 16. Norris gets past Verstappen down the back straight but Verstappen lunges down the inside. Norris sees that move coming and comes back underneath to finally get the move done.

06:52pm

Lap 28 of 57

Will McLaren react immediately and bring Norris in after Antonelli’s stop? The answer is yes and Norris is coming in. It is a decent stop but will it be enough? It is very close as Norris comes out of the pits. Norris comes back out just ahead but Antonelli gets the overtake done. Verstappen is just ahead having pitted a long while back. Piastri is yet to come in and leads the race.

06:50pm

Lap 26 of 57

Norris, two seconds out in front, is complaining of spots of rain. Piastri is now 10 seconds behind Antonelli in third, with Hamilton a further four seconds back, with Verstappen right behind him.

Verstappen thinks of a move up the inside of Hamilton at turn 11 but the seven-time world champion keeps fourth ahead of the four-time world champion.

Then, at turn 17, Verstappen does lunge up the inside and gets the place.

Antonelli has come into the pits and comes back on fifth.

06:45pm

Lap 23 of 57

Piastri is told over team radio that there is possible rain in the next couple of laps, with the main area of the track that could be affected being turns seven and eight. “It could be heavy”. The top four, Norris, Antonelli, Piastri and Hamilton, have not pitted yet.

06:43pm

Lap 22 of 57

Ferrari have reacted to Russell’s stop by bringing Leclerc in. It is a slightly slow stop from Leclerc, which allows Russell to get the undercut done. Russell was told by his team that the outlap was critical and so it proved.

This is farcical; the incident involving Verstappen and whether he crossed the pit exit line will happen after the race. Why could that not happen now?

06:41pm

Lap 21 of 57

Mercedes have brought Russell in from fifth to put the hard tyre on. He comes back out in 12th. As he does that, Verstappen goes up the inside of Colapinto at turn one to take sixth place.

06:40pm

Lap 20 of 57

Top five with gaps:

1. Norris (Interval)
2. Antonelli +2.8
3. Leclerc +4.5
4. Piastri +0.8
5. Russell +1.0

06:37pm

Lap 18 of 57

Perez is told over team radio that there is expected to be a shower in the next two or three laps.

06:35pm

Lap 17 of 57

Albon and Verstappen have a close battle through the final few corners before the latter finally gets the move done up the inside of turn one to take ninth.

Up ahead Piastri had momentarily taken third from Leclerc but the Ferrari man quickly gets that place back.

06:33pm

Lap 16 of 57

Verstappen is making some decent progress through the field and is up into tenth on those hard tyres. A reminder he has made a stop and could in theory go to the end, although it would be a long way to the end and there is the threat of rain. The Dutchman though is under investigation for potentially crossing the white line at the pit exit.

06:31pm

Lap 14 of 57

Antonelli got past Leclerc up the inside of turn 17 but the Monegasque gets second place back from the young Italian before turn one. Was it wise to make that move there?

Antonelli then gets Leclerc back at turn 11 before running a touch deep. Leclerc nearly gets the place back on the outside of turn 12 but Antonelli keeps second.

06:29pm Key moments

Lap 13 of 57

Norris gets a great run coming out of turn eight and the long run to turn 11. The world champion gets the move done on Leclerc before turn 11 to take first place.

Russell tells his team he was in the wrong strat mode.

06:28pm

Lap 12 of 57

Leclerc decides to scamper right at turn 17 and easily holds onto first place ahead of Norris and Antonelli. Piastri thinks about a move around the outside of the exit of turn one on Russell and manages to get it done. Piastri tells his team that it was “super dangerous” from Russell.

06:25pm

Lap 11 of 57

There is the threat of rain around but it could skirt around the circuit or bring a heavy burst in about 20 minutes. The strategists will be very busy at every team down the pit lane.

The safety car is coming in at the end of this lap.

06:22pm

Lap 10 of 57

We are still under safety conditions as they remove the stricken cars of Hadjar and Gasly. Lawson and Hulkenberg are also out. Verstappen has dropped back to 16th after that pit stop so was that risk worth it? I am not sure it is with all the traffic. McLaren for example thought about a stop but their drivers thought it was too early. Here is the top five as it stands:

1. Leclerc
2. Norris
3. Antonelli
4. Russell
5. Piastri

06:19pm

Lap 9 of 57

We are watching the replays from the start of the race, where Verstappen went around coming out of the first turn and going through turn two. The Dutchman spun 360 and it is a miracle that no-one collided with him.

06:16pm

Lap 7 of 57

Red Bull have decided to call Verstappen in, which is a very early stop, to put the hard tyres on. It is a cheap stop under the safety car but he will come back out into traffic.

06:13pm Key moments

Safety car

Norris has got past Antonelli before turn one and takes second place. As that is happening, Hadjar is into the wall at turn 15 and the Red Bull man is thumping his wheel and car in anger. He clipped the wall at turn 14, damaging his front suspension, and ends up in the wall. We also have Gasly into the wall at turn 17. Gasly attempted to go around the outside of turn 17 but there is contact with Lawson and Gasly’s car completely flips over. Unsurprisingly, the safety car is deployed.

It is absolute chaos in Miami and there is not even any rain yet!

Frustration for Isack Hadjar - Clive Mason/Getty Images

Hadjar’s race is over - Clive Mason/Getty Images

Pierre Gasly flipped over - Rudy Carezzevoli/Getty Images

06:12pm

Lap 5 of 57

Norris, in third, is told over team radio to allow the front two to yo-yo, which could play into the world champion’s hands. Antonelli got the move down on the previous lap to take first before Leclerc takes first place back again into turn 11.

06:10pm Key moments

Lap 4 of 57

Antonelli is looking racy and is challenging Leclerc for first place. The young Italian thinks about a move at turn 11 but instead waits until turn 17, where he goes up the inside of Leclerc to take first.

06:08pm

Lap 3 of 57

Russell gets a good run out of the final few corners and makes a move down the inside of Piastri at turn one to take fourth place.

06:06pm Key moments • Video

Lap 1 of 57

Norris and Leclerc made good starts off the line but Verstappen blocks off Norris on the inside. Antonelli has gone deep into the first corner. Verstappen and Leclerc are jostling for first place into the first few corners but Verstappen ends up spinning coming out of the first corner. It appears that Verstappen got sent around after getting onto the kerb too aggressively. Absolute chaos at the start.

Leclerc leads ahead of Antonelli, Norris and Piastri, who is the biggest gainer at the start. Verstappen is down in ninth. Hamilton and Colapinto touch on the exit of turn 11 but the former eventually takes sixth.

06:04pm

Go, go, go!

We are under way in the 2026 Miami Grand Prix.

06:00pm

Formation lap

Providing it is a dry race, which looks very unlikely, it could well be a one-stop race but what tyre do you start on? Look to run long on mediums or hards or go aggressive with a soft, hoping the rain might come soon. Everyone bar Hadjar, who starts in the pit lane on hards, will start on the medium tyre. Should someone have gambled with their tyre choice? Clearly most did not think like that.

There is going to be so much attention on Antonelli’s start. He has made a lot of poor starts so far this season, some his fault and some not. The likes of Leclerc and Norris have made some great starts this season and might fancy their chances of taking the lead into turn one.

This could be spicy!

05:57pm

A reminder of the starting top ten

1. Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes)
2. Max Verstappen (Red Bull)
3. Charles Leclerc (Ferrari)
4. Lando Norris (McLaren)
5. George Russell (Mercedes)
6. Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari)
7. Oscar Piastri (McLaren)
8. Franco Colapinto (Alpine)
9. Pierre Gasly (Alpine)
10. Nico Hulkenberg (Audi)

05:54pm

Pre-race thoughts of Lando Norris, who starts fourth

“Miami is always quite unpredictable so we will wait and see. It could be a dry start, after that who knows. After that it will be a game of anticipation and being on the right tyre on the right time.”

05:50pm

Max Verstappen, who starts second, speaking to Sky Sports

“It is pretty dry. Just some wet spots under the bridges but it should be ok. The more we wait the more rain is coming. If we get started now, it is more the lightning in the area; that is a bit trickier around here. It is slippery. These cars do not have a lot of grip in the wet.”

05:49pm

The madhouse!

Miami grid a celebrity zoo, as per. Good fun though. Teams I’ve spoken to expect rain around 30 laps in. “A shower”. Although quite what that constitutes here in Florida is anyone’s guess.

05:47pm

Celebrities everywhere you look

Rafael Nadal - Cristobal Herrera-Ulashkevich/Shutterstock

DJ Khaled - Sona Maleterova/LAT Images

Lionel Messi - James Sutton/LAT Images

05:40pm

Rain on its way?

McLaren CEO Zak Brown has just spoken to Sky Sports and says he originally thought it was going to rain at race time but it appears that will not be the case. He is anticipating if the rain comes it will come hard.

05:39pm

The thoughts of Lewis Hamilton, who starts sixth today

“Super excited. These are the conditions that I have always enjoyed racing in. The mixed conditions in Formula 2 were really exciting, it was one of the most exciting races I have seen for a while. So I hope that is the case for us today.”

05:36pm

Messi in attendance

05:32pm

Weather update from Ted Kravitz on Sky Sports

“It is dry at the moment but there is a band of rain coming in in about 25 to 35 minutes, but it could miss the circuit. It is just a little thunderstorm, and if it does miss the circuit and we have a dry race, then we are in for an interesting one.

“It is only a one-stopper, but you can start on the medium or the soft, but the medium-hard is being projected as the optimum strategy. But if the wet weather comes, all of that goes out of the window.”

05:28pm

Top five in the constructors’ standings

1. Mercedes- 143pts
2. Ferrari- 98pts
3. McLaren- 61pts
4. Red Bull- 20pts
5. Haas- 18pts

05:21pm

Top five in the drivers’ standings

1. Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes) - 75pts 
2. George Russell (Mercedes) - 68pts 
3. Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) - 55pts 
4. Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari) - 43pts 
5. Lando Norris (McLaren) - 33pts

05:19pm

Statement from FIA, FOM and Miami Grand Prix

“Following discussions between FIA, FOM and the Miami promoter, the decision has been taken to move the start of Sunday’s Miami Grand Prix to 1pm local time in Miami (6pm BST) due to the weather forecast that is expected to bring heavier rainstorms later in the afternoon close to the original planned race start time.

“This decision has been taken to ensure the least amount of disruption to the race, and to ensure the maximum possible window to complete the Grand Prix in the best conditions and to prioritise the safety of drivers, fans, teams and staff.”

05:09pm

Starting top ten for the race

1. Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes)
2. Max Verstappen (Red Bull)
3. Charles Leclerc (Ferrari)
4. Lando Norris (McLaren)
5. George Russell (Mercedes)
6. Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari)
7. Oscar Piastri (McLaren)
8. Franco Colapinto (Alpine)
9. Pierre Gasly (Alpine)
10. Nico Hulkenberg (Audi)

05:02pm Key moments

Antonelli and Verstappen start on the front row

Championship leader Kimi Antonelli will start today’s Miami Grand Prix pole. Antonelli only finished sixth in the Sprint earlier on Saturday but delivered a time good enough for pole with his first effort in Q3. Antonelli’s lead at the top of the drivers’ standings was cut to seven points to his teammate George Russell after the Sprint but has the chance to extend his lead today.

“It has been an amazing day to be on pole again,” Antonelli said. “It was a difficult start with the Sprint when it did not go our way but super happy with the recovery. I got a bit excited with the last lap in Q3 but the first lap was good enough and I am really happy with that.”

Antonelli will be joined on the front row by Max Verstappen, who was the only driver to properly improve with his second and final run in Q3.

“It is an incredible turnaround for us,” said Verstappen. “I really did not feel in control of the car up until this weekend. I did not know what would happen with it. The team have brought a really good performance upgrade to the car, made it more driveable for me and it really clicked as soon as I jumped in the car here it felt great, or a lot better. For us, to be on the front row, is a bit of a surprise but we take it. It is a massive boost for the whole team and we are heading in the right direction.”

Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc will start third, with McLaren’s Lando Norris joining him on the second row in fourth. Norris won the Sprint earlier on Saturday as part of a McLaren one-two but qualifying was trickier for the team, with Oscar Piastri set to start today’s race in seventh.

“There were little things,” said Norris. “It was a bit windier, the direction was different, temperatures. But same for everyone, right? I think both cars clearly struggled a bit more than yesterday and we need to understand why. At the same time, it’s not like I felt we did a bad job. But other people did a bad job yesterday and today they did the job they should have done.

“Mercedes are just as quick as us. When you look at the GPS from Ferrari and Red Bull, there are many places they are quicker than us. So we just did a very good job yesterday and in the Sprint to win. But qualifying was a little reality check. But it is more where we deserved to be and where we should be honestly.”

The race has been brought forward by three hours due to the threat of thunderstorms. It was set to get under way at 9pm BST (4pm local time) but the FIA and F1 have announced a new start time of 6pm BST.

Try full access to The Telegraph free today. Unlock their award-winning website and essential news app, plus useful tools and expert guides for your money, health and holidays.