Sky Sports Formula 1 analyst Martin Brundle has declared Mercedes driver Kimi Antonelli as the clear benchmark in the 2026 championship after an impressive sprint race victory at Silverstone.
Antonelli, now in his second season in the series, has emerged as the dominant force. The 19-year-old became the youngest driver to lead the standings after back-to-back wins at the Chinese and Japanese Grands Prix. He went on to secure three further consecutive wins in Miami, Canada and Monaco.
After retiring from the Barcelona-Catalunya Grand Prix and a third-place finish in Austria, Antonelli has come back strongly at Silverstone. He qualified second for the sprint race and claimed the victory after taking the lead of the race from seven-time champion Lewis Hamilton.
“Kimi used his head in the sprint. That’s a maturity now that’s way beyond his years,” Brundle explained during the Sky Sports F1 British Grand Prix weekend broadcast.
“He’s a little bit wild from time to time – we saw that in Austria on the first lap – but he’s surviving those. Then, he settles down with incredible pace, especially in the second half of a tyre stint.
“He’s unquestionably the driver to beat in this championship.”
Andrea Kimi Antonelli, Mercedes
Photo by: Erik Junius
Former W Series driver Naomi Schiff, who joined Brundle on the Sky Sports broadcast, added: “When he came into Formula 1, we thought Toto [Wolff] brought Kimi in prematurely.
“He doesn’t lack any raw speed, it’s how you rein him in and how to make sure he doesn’t make too many mistakes. He’s only 19, but what a wonderful story it is for F1.”
Antonelli now leads the drivers’ championship with 179 points. His Mercedes team-mate George Russell follows in second with 136 points and Hamilton is third with 132 points.
As a result, the Brackley outfit leads the constructors’ championship with 315 points. Ferrari is second with 215 points and McLaren is third with 167 points.
