Kimi Antonelli has claimed his third Formula 1 victory in succession after holding off Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri to win the 2026 Miami Grand Prix from pole position, extending his early-season championship lead and confirming a remarkable run of form for the teenage Mercedes driver.
The race opened in chaos. Antonelli was beaten off the line by Max Verstappen, who briefly led from second on the grid before spinning at the exit of turn two. The Red Bull driver's mistake collected his teammate Isack Hadjar, who was sent into the wall and out of the race. Charles Leclerc also spun in the same sequence, leaving Antonelli to inherit the lead from Norris within a few corners.
From there, Mercedes executed a textbook strategy. A one-lap-earlier pit stop than McLaren broke the McLaren undercut threat and gave Antonelli clean air for the run to the flag. Norris closed in but never quite arrived in DRS range for long enough to mount a serious attack.
"It's a bit weird, I feel like we should have won the race out there today," Norris admitted after the flag. "At least we could have had more of a fight post the stop. I just didn't get that chance again. And Kimi drove a good race, so it's hats off to him, honestly. He did a good race and never gave me an opportunity to get close again."
The McLaren driver was philosophical about the runner-up slot. "I'm also happy with second, depends what way you want to look at it," Norris said. "When it's a win, if it's like a P2 P3, I'm less bothered. But when it's for a win, of course it hurts a little bit more."
Piastri completed the podium after a measured drive, climbing to third in the closing stages. "Reasonably good race," the Australian said. "Couple of moments that weren't my finest, but to come away with the podium's obviously great. Given the toughness of the race and having to overtake, I think third was the most we could do."
George Russell took fourth in the second Mercedes despite damaged front-wing endplate from contact in the opening melee. Verstappen recovered to fifth on aged hard tyres after his early spin, holding off a final-lap challenge from Leclerc, while Lewis Hamilton came home seventh in his Ferrari.
For Antonelli, the victory makes it three Grands Prix on the trot — a streak that, combined with his sprint pole at the same venue, has reshaped the championship picture. The Italian rookie now leaves Florida with a meaningful points cushion over Russell heading into the Canadian Grand Prix in Montreal.
There was a small footnote: both Russell and Verstappen were placed under post-race investigation by the stewards, with the results pending at the time of writing. Even with that hanging, Mercedes leave Miami as comfortably the form team in 2026 — and Antonelli, just months into his Formula 1 career, leaves it as the championship leader looking increasingly hard to dislodge.
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