Kimi Antonelli tasted more glory at the United States Grand Prix in Austin, Texas — but history was put on pause.
The 20-year-old phenom started from the pole position and did not look back on Sunday, October 25, putting a world championship within fingertips.
Antonelli could have won the world title on Sunday with a win, combined with Lewis Hamilton finishing 5th or lower and teammate George Russell finishing 9th or lower.
Ultimately, Hamilton, 41, finished in 4th place and Russell, 28, finished in 8th.
Antonelli’s next chance for his championship moment comes next week in Mexico City, where he only needs to finish 9th or better. If it comes to fruition, Antonelli would become the youngest world champion in Formula 1 history.
Us was on site throughout the weekend at Austin’s Circuit of the Americas thanks to Allwyn, a multinational lottery company, which included a view of the track’s iconic Turn 1 from the ultra-exclusive Paddock Club.
“It was the result we needed,” Antonelli said in a post-race interview. “The whole team deserves it so much, and all this time putting in so much work on bringing this new package and finally seeing the result is very pleasant.”
He added, “It was also perfect execution from strategy to call the one-stop, so I’m really happy we made it stick, and it was a great team effort.”
Looking ahead, Antonelli said he is “very excited” about Mexico City and all it has the potential to bring.
“I would love to clinch the title in style with a great result,” he said. “That’s the mindset. That’s always the mindset, and that’s what the mindset is going to be from now until the end of the season. I’m just going to try to enjoy every moment because they’re moments that will always be remembered.”
In addition to sponsoring the F1 formation lap — the ultimate moment of anticipation during a race when anything can happen, like when you’re waiting for the lottery to be drawn — Allwyn donated €100,000 (equivalent to roughly $133,000) to the the Del Valle ISD Education Foundation, a nonprofit that works to enhance educational opportunities and empower students in the Del Valle community in Texas.
“Del Valle is historically a rural, low-income, predominantly Hispanic area of Austin,” Del Valle ISD Education Foundation executive director Josh Thomas exclusively explained to Us. “Now it is booming as a high-tech manufacturing center. All these companies are coming in, building huge plants. Our goal is for our students to be able to get those jobs because our students love that kind of work. They’re dedicated. They stay for a long time. They just need to know that these jobs exist and close the logistical gaps to get from point A to B.”
The donation will directly fund the “Fast Track” initiative to expand teaching grants, student scholarships and STEM opportunities for 12,000 local students.
“School districts don’t have enough money to do the basic functions, let alone all the other things with inflation and diesel prices,” Thomas explained. “Extra things, there’s no money for. But these things are not extra, right? They’re the things that are going to make a huge difference and be transformative for a person’s life.”
He added, “The average family income in Del Valle for a family of four is $45,000. That is barely making it. But if we can get one of our graduating seniors to get a job that pays $50,000 a year right out of school, and a lot of these do, that immediately changes this family’s income. It allows them to stay in their house, not to have to worry about their younger brothers and sisters, and get on a path to long-term prosperity and sustainability. That’s what this grant allows us to set in motion.”
For more information on Allwyn — including The Allwyn League, a predictions game on the F1 Predict platform — click here.
