Kimi Antonelli won the Japanese Grand Prix to make it two consecutive victories and move to the top of the world championship standings.
The 19-year-old benefited from a safety-car period after Oliver Bearman crashed, allowing him to make a pit stop with reduced time loss compared to his rivals.
Before the incident, Antonelli had not stopped, while McLaren’s Oscar Piastri and his Mercedes team-mate George Russell had already pitted.
The development enabled Antonelli to retain the lead and secure victory, becoming the youngest driver to lead the championship. He now leads Russell by nine points.
Russell, who finished fourth behind Piastri and Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc, reacted over team radio, saying “unbelievable” as he realised Antonelli would win for the second race in a row.
Mercedes had planned to extend Antonelli’s first stint, with the driver showing competitive pace before the safety car. The team believed he could have maintained the lead even without the intervention.
“It feels pretty good, it is too early to think about the championship but we are on [a] good way,” said Antonelli.
“In the race, I had a terrible start. Just need to check what happened but then I was lucky with the safety car to be in the lead and then the pace was just incredible.”
The safety car was triggered on lap 22 after Bearman lost control and crashed into the barriers. He later received medical attention and was released.
Before the incident, the race lead had been contested by Piastri and Russell, with both drivers involved in early battles.
At the restart, Antonelli maintained his position, while Piastri held off challenges behind to secure second place. Leclerc finished third, while Russell dropped to fourth.
The result gave Piastri his first podium of the season.
“Turns out we’re all right when we actually get to start,” Piastri said.
“A shame we never got to see what would have happened, but for us at this point to be disappointed about finishing second is a pretty good place to be.”
Top 10
F1 now has an unplanned five-week break because the conflict in the Middle East led to the cancellations of the races in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia, which were due to take place in April.
The next event of what is now a 22-race calendar is the first of three visits to the United States this year, the Miami Grand Prix, from 1-3 May.
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