Kimi Antonelli caps record-breaking weekend with DHL Fastest Lap

As Shanghai in China hosted the first sprint weekend of the new Formula 1 era, Mercedes once again demonstrated that they are the team to beat. From the first practice session through the sprint, George Russell dominated every session, but the tide then began to turn in qualifying, when Mercedes junior Kimi Antonelli emerged as the man of the hour.

At the tender age of 19 years and 201 days, Antonelli became the youngest pole-sitter in Formula 1 history. Although he was beaten to the first corner by Lewis Hamilton at the start of the race, after two laps he overtook his predecessor at Mercedes and then led the race until the finish.

On lap 52 of 56, Antonelli showed what he and his Mercedes W17 were capable of. He rounded the Shanghai International Circuit in a time of 1:35.275 minutes, securing the DHL Fastest Lap. Not long after, the 19-year-old had a brief scare when he braked too hard in Turn 14, but having already established a nine-second lead over his teammate, he was able to ride it out.

Antonelli won the Chinese Grand Prix ahead of Russell and Hamilton. This makes him the second-youngest Grand Prix winner in Formula 1 history and the first Italian to win since Giancarlo Fisichella in Malaysia in 2006.

After crossing the finish line, he was overcome with emotion: "I am speechless. Thank you to my team, they helped me to achieve this dream. I wanted to bring Italy back on top and we did today. I gave myself a bit of a heart attack at the end, but it was a good race. I am super happy."