Verstappen rules out comeback as Antonelli closes in on youngest-ever F1 title

Max Verstappen has conceded he poses no threat to Kimi Antonelli’s Formula 1 championship lead, joking after the Madrid Grand Prix that a comeback from the reigning champion is firmly off the table.

Antonelli’s victory in Madrid has left him on the brink of a maiden world title with eight or nine race weekends remaining, depending on the status of the end-of-season Middle East rounds. Should the 20-year-old Italian clinch the championship, he would also displace Sebastian Vettel as the youngest world champion in Formula 1 history.

The result also effectively ended George Russell’s title hopes. The Mercedes team-mate acknowledged on Sunday that he can no longer win the championship even in a scenario where he wins every remaining race and Antonelli consistently finishes second — a concession Russell made publicly to the media after the race.

When asked alongside Lando Norris what advice he would offer Antonelli for the run-in, the Mercedes driver himself cut in first, suggesting his rivals would be hoping for a Verstappen resurgence. The four-time champion was quick to shut that down. “I’m definitely not having a comeback,” Verstappen said.

Last season, Verstappen famously overturned a significant points deficit by finishing on the podium at every grand prix after the summer break. He acknowledged the situation is fundamentally different now, with a race win his only realistic ambition for the remainder of the year. If he fails to win a grand prix in 2025, it would be the first season without a victory since his debut campaign in 2015.

On what Antonelli should do with his commanding lead, Verstappen was straightforward in his assessment. “Kimi just needs to do what he’s doing. It’s fantastic, it’s working really well,” he said. “He should not stress about it too much, which I don’t think he is. He’s just delivering, he’s confident, and he’s getting more and more experience. He’s still young and he’s still very early in his career, but he’s already flying.”

Verstappen added that Antonelli’s strength lies in his simplicity of approach. “He shouldn’t overcomplicate things and he’s not doing that. He has a lot of good people around him that know what he needs, so it’s all working well.”

Norris, for his part, suggested Antonelli’s rivals would be unwise to offer the young Italian any further useful guidance — an implicit acknowledgement that the championship leader needs little help from those chasing him.