F1 Spanish GP Results: Antonelli Seals Major Victory as Hamilton’s Championship Takes a Hit… See Details 

Kimi Antonelli took another huge step towards winning the 2026 F1 world championship after securing victory at the Spanish Grand Prix on Sunday.

The Mercedes star was not without fortune, though, as he was running behind McLaren pole sitter Lando Norris before a virtual safety car caused by Lance Stroll’s retiring Aston Martin turned the race on its head at the Madring.

The incident came too late for Norris to pit on the lap as he was on the start/finish straight, but perfectly for rivals including Antonelli and Max Verstappen.

By the time Norris completed nearly another lap under VSC conditions, green flag racing was resumed, meaning the world champion missed out on saving crucial race time by pitting under the VSC. Norris pitted anyway, but a slow stop of seven seconds put him out of contention for the win.

Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc, who turned down the chance to pit after Stroll’s Lap 14 retirement, then inherited the lead and held on until Lap 48 before pitting for softs, coming out in fourth place where he would finish the race.

This allowed Antonelli to claim victory in front of Verstappen and Norris, with his closest title rival in Mercedes team-mate George Russell fifth.

Having qualified P4, Lewis Hamilton retired just seven laps into the race, his first DNF of the season, after suffering brake issues, conceding in an interview during the race that his championship hopes are now over.

The first race at the Madring was a lacklustre affair but sees Antonelli leave Madrid with a huge 81-point advantage (now over three race wins) over Russell with only nine races to go.

2026 F1 Spanish Grand Prix Results