After the Hungarian GP, Max Verstappen and company will enjoy a well-deserved summer break. After eleven Grands Prix, the F1 factories close their doors and the drivers get the chance to recharge for an extremely busy second half of the season. Looking back at the first half of the year, it becomes clear that Kimi Antonelli is the big revelation within Formula 1. Max Verstappen and Lando Norris take a deep bow to the young championship leader.
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The statistics don’t lie: Antonelli is the big standout of 2026 after eleven Grands Prix. After a promising rookie year, the 19-year-old Italian has already won six races and claimed pole position just as many times. Aside from retirements and technical issues – like the one in Silverstone – he has always been on the podium. Even during the last Hungarian GP, he managed to turn a disappointing qualifying into a third place. As a result, he leads the championship convincingly. His lead over nearest challenger Lewis Hamilton is no less than fifty championship points.
‘You can’t ignore Antonelli’
During the official FIA press conference after the Hungarian GP, Verstappen and Norris, both proven champions, were asked who had stood out the most in 2026. “I think first and foremost we want to name ourselves,” the Englishman laughed. “Besides, I feel you can’t really compare these kinds of things. You can hardly put the different teams side by side. But if you really look at the big picture, you can’t ignore Kimi (Antonelli, ed.),” he admitted.
“Mercedes has a great car and he has done an incredibly good job by convincingly beating his teammate (Russell, ed.) every weekend,” Norris noted. “If you look at the championship, you have to give Kimi the recognition he deserves.”
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‘Impressive to see’
Verstappen was also full of praise for the young Italian. “Yes, I mostly agree with Lando. I think Kimi has really done well up front. He has driven very good races, performs solidly and is also the strongest within his team,” he said about the power balance at Mercedes. “He just has to keep going like this,” Verstappen advised. “Of course, he has sometimes had a lot of bad luck, which is a shame, but certainly for a 19-year-old driver, he has been very strong so far. As an outsider, that is really impressive to see.”
About his own results, the Red Bull driver was less positive, although that was mainly due to his team’s performance. “For me, this year has been a bit of a jungle, but I just try to enjoy it where I can. Of course, if the car drives a bit nicer, you can enjoy it a bit more, although that is easier said than done nowadays. That has to do with other things,” he referred to the regulations he so strongly criticized. “But yes, Kimi has performed very strongly at least. That’s nice to see. He is first of all a very nice guy and also a very strong driver. That’s a good combination.”
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