Andrea Kimi Antonelli, the leader of the Formula One World Championship, won the Spanish Grand Prix on Sunday at the new Madring circuit in the Spanish capital, extending his advantage at the top of the standings and confirming his status as the clear favourite for the title.
The young Italian, who drives for Mercedes, took victory in the first Formula One race ever held at the new Madrid circuit, finishing ahead of the Netherlands' Max Verstappen (Red Bull) and Britain's Lando Norris (McLaren), who had started from pole position.
Madring is a new semi-urban circuit built at IFEMA, Madrid's exhibition and convention centre, and Sunday's race marked the fourteenth round of the Formula One World Championship.
Antonelli said it had been a difficult race. He said winning felt good, though it left him with a bittersweet feeling because he believed Norris deserved the victory, adding that they had still managed to win and would keep pushing.
Norris Left Frustrated by Team Strategy
Norris finished third after his team made what the McLaren driver considered a poor strategic call. He said it had been a tough race in which victory had slipped away, adding that he felt they had deserved it.
He said that on Saturday he had produced a great lap to take pole position and felt he had driven a perfect race on Sunday, but that luck had not been on his side.
Norris, the reigning world champion, had been leading comfortably until the virtual safety car (VSC) was deployed on lap 15.
While Antonelli and Verstappen immediately pitted for fresh tyres, McLaren kept Norris out on track for an extra lap. Just as he prepared to pit, the VSC period ended, costing him time against his rivals with a slow seven-second stop.
Norris said the team had suffered a lot of bad luck, and he described himself as frustrated by how the race had unfolded.
When he rejoined the track, Norris had dropped to fifth place, with Charles Leclerc, who had not yet made his stop, and George Russell both ahead of him.
Norris passed Russell to move up to third when Leclerc, who had led for more than half the race, finally pitted on lap 48 of 57. That handed the lead to Antonelli, who cruised to the finish to take the chequered flag.
Antonelli's 81-Point Lead
Antonelli now leads the championship by 81 points over his closest rival, George Russell, who finished fifth on Sunday behind Ferrari's Charles Leclerc, with nine Grands Prix left to be run.
The Mercedes driver has now strung together five consecutive podium finishes, three of them wins, and appears immune to the pressure of the title fight.
Antonelli said his father helps him keep his feet on the ground. He said he only wants to take it race by race and enjoy driving without thinking about the title, adding that they would see where things stood at the end of the season. Sunday's win was his eighth in 14 Grands Prix this season.
Russell, for his part, suffered from his team's decision to run a two-stop strategy, the only one of the front-runners to do so, which ruined his chances of reaching the podium and left him further adrift of his teammate in the title battle.
Seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari) had to retire on lap 7 because of a brake problem.
Rest of the Top 10 at Madring
The top 10 at Madring was completed by Argentina's Franco Colapinto (Alpine), Australia's Oscar Piastri (McLaren), Britain's Arvid Lindblad (Racing Bulls) and Germany's Nico Hülkenberg (Audi).
Brazil's Gabriel Bortoleto (Audi) finished 13th.
Spain's Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin) finished 17th, while his compatriot Carlos Sainz (Williams) retired from the race, as did Mexico's Sergio "Checo" Perez (Cadillac).
