Kimi Antonelli came dangerously close to retiring…
Kimi Antonelli’s championship-winning afternoon at the Mexico City Grand Prix nearly ended in disaster, with Mercedes revealing that the young Italian came dangerously close to retiring just four laps before the chequered flag.
The Mercedes driver eventually crossed the finish line in third place, securing his maiden Formula 1 Drivers’ Championship and making history as the youngest world champion the sport has ever seen. However, what appeared to be a controlled drive to the biggest achievement of his career was far more dramatic behind the scenes.
Mercedes deputy team principal Bradley Lord revealed that Antonelli’s W17 suffered a serious mechanical problem during the closing stages of the race. The extent of the damage only became clear when the team inspected the car after the Grand Prix.
Speaking on the High Performance Racing podcast, Lord explained that mechanics discovered oil covering the underside of the car after removing the floor.
The inspection revealed that the car’s oil sump had cracked, putting Antonelli’s race-ending hopes at serious risk.
According to Lord, Antonelli began noticing signs of trouble with the engine approximately four laps from the finish. Despite the growing problem, the Italian managed to keep the car running long enough to reach the chequered flag.
Lord described the situation as the driver being right on the edge of retirement, highlighting just how close Mercedes came to losing a result that would ultimately deliver its young star the world championship.
For Antonelli, the timing could hardly have been more dramatic. He arrived in Mexico City knowing that a ninth-place finish would be enough to secure the championship, regardless of how his closest rivals, George Russell and Lewis Hamilton, performed.
Instead, the 20-year-old delivered something even better, finishing third after starting fourth on the grid.
His journey to the podium also featured an important moment of racing instinct. Following the restart, Antonelli spotted an opportunity to overtake Charles Leclerc and executed a decisive move into Turn 1.
Leclerc had suffered a significant lock-up, leaving his tyres badly damaged. Antonelli recognised the opportunity and made his move, taking the position that would eventually secure his place on the podium.
Lord praised the overtake, describing it as an exceptionally clean move and pointing to Antonelli’s natural racing instincts as one of his biggest strengths.
The Italian eventually finished behind race winner Max Verstappen and Ferrari’s Hamilton, creating a memorable podium featuring three drivers with a combined 12 world championships.
Beyond the celebrations, the result represented another remarkable chapter in Antonelli’s rapid rise through Formula 1.
His second season with Mercedes has transformed him from an exciting young prospect into a championship-winning driver. The title also ended Italy’s long wait for another Formula 1 Drivers’ Champion, with Antonelli becoming the first Italian to achieve the feat since Alberto Ascari in 1953.
What makes the achievement even more remarkable is how close it came to slipping away in the final moments.
Mercedes will undoubtedly be relieved that the damaged engine held together long enough for Antonelli to complete the race.
A retirement with only four laps remaining would have turned a historic championship celebration into a devastating disappointment.
Instead, Antonelli survived the mechanical scare, secured his third-place finish and walked away from Mexico City with a place in Formula 1 history.
