I was about to cry: Antonelli after winning his maiden Grand Prix

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Kimi Antonelli, 19, said one of his “big dreams” came true in China on Sunday when he won a Grand Prix for the first time in his fledgling F1 career. 

The Italian, who took over Lewis Hamilton’s old seat at Mercedes at the start of the 2025 season, swept to a maiden win at the Shanghai International Circuit, finishing 5.515 seconds ahead of teammate George Russell.  The result also saw him become the sport’s second youngest race winner after Max Verstappen won the Spanish Grand Prix in 2016 at the age of 18. 

“I’m about to cry to be honest. I really wanted to bring Italy back to the top and we did today,” said an emotional Antonelli.

Mercedes’s Kimi Antonelli en route his win at the Chinese GP in Shanghai on Sunday. Pics/AFP

“The team did an incredible job. The car is super quick and it’s allowing us to fight for wins. I’m really happy because they also helped me to achieve one of my big dreams,” he added.

Antonelli struggled at the start where Lewis Hamilton’s Ferrari took the lead on lap one, but he regained the lead in the second lap, and drove a near-flawless race from there on.

Hamilton finished third, clinching his first podium for Ferrari since signing with the Italian team. His teammate Charles Leclerc finished fourth. World champion Lando Norris and his McLaren teammate Oscar Piastri did not start the race due to technical issues.

Meanwhile, F1 also officially announced the cancellation of the Bahrain Grand Prix and the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix, which were due to be held in April.

20
No. of years since an Italian (Giancarlo) Fisichella) last won a  GP (in Malaysia)

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