Madrid, Spain, September 13, 2026: Kimi Antonelli claimed his eighth victory of the 2026 FIA Formula One World Championship season after winning the inaugural Spanish Grand Prix at Madring, beating Max Verstappen and Lando Norris in a race decided by the timing of an early Virtual Safety Car.

The Mercedes driver crossed the finish line 4.351 seconds ahead of Verstappen, with Norris a further 0.738s behind in third. Charles Leclerc finished fourth for Ferrari, ahead of Mercedes teammate George Russell, while Liam Lawson secured sixth for Red Bull.

The victory further strengthened Antonelli’s position at the top of the 2026 F1 Drivers’ Championship, with the Mercedes driver extending his lead to 81 points.

Norris loses Spanish GP lead after VSC

Polesitter Lando Norris made a strong start and initially controlled the race, but his hopes of converting pole into victory were hit by the timing of the Virtual Safety Car and a slow pit stop.

Antonelli attacked Norris into the opening chicane but was forced to cut the corner and rejoined behind the McLaren. The Mercedes driver made another attempt, but Verstappen took advantage to move into second.

Verstappen then came under pressure from Lewis Hamilton, who believed the Red Bull driver should return his position following their opening-lap battle. Red Bull subsequently instructed Verstappen to give the place back to avoid a possible penalty.

On Lap 4, Antonelli and Hamilton moved ahead.

Hamilton’s race then unravelled rapidly. After reporting a brake problem, the Ferrari driver ran wide on Lap 6 and retired one lap later.

At the front, Norris had established a lead of around 4.5 seconds over Antonelli, with Verstappen running third.

Oscar Piastri also suffered early problems after sustaining front-wing damage in first-lap contact with Russell, forcing the McLaren driver down the order.

Virtual Safety Car changes the race

The key moment of the inaugural Spanish Grand Prix came on Lap 13, when Lance Stroll stopped at Turn 20 with a suspected brake problem, triggering a Virtual Safety Car.

Antonelli, Verstappen and Russell immediately entered the pits, while Norris initially stayed out.

The VSC period ended shortly afterwards, forcing Norris to make his pit stop under green-flag conditions. A slow seven-second pit stop compounded his problems and dropped him to fifth behind Leclerc, Antonelli, Verstappen and Russell.

Leclerc, who had not yet stopped, inherited the lead for Ferrari.

Antonelli quickly closed on the Monegasque driver, although the Mercedes driver reported an unusual feeling from the steering wheel. The team subsequently found no obvious issue in its data.

Ferrari opted to keep Leclerc on the hard tyres, hoping a later Safety Car or red flag would provide an opportunity to make the strategy work.

Norris fights back as Verstappen holds second

Russell made his second pit stop on Lap 28, switching back to hard tyres. Norris used the opportunity to move ahead and began closing the gap to Verstappen and Antonelli.

Russell recovered fifth position on Lap 35 after completing an around-the-outside pass on Lawson.

With nine laps remaining, Ferrari finally brought Leclerc into the pits for soft tyres. He rejoined in fourth, leaving Antonelli, Verstappen and Norris at the front.

Antonelli maintained a gap of around two seconds over Verstappen, while Norris closed in on the Red Bull driver.

The fight for second intensified in the closing stages. On the penultimate lap, Verstappen cut the Turn 5 chicane after encountering traffic. Norris drew alongside the Red Bull, but could not complete the pass.

Antonelli was therefore able to control the final lap and take the chequered flag for his eighth win of the season.

Verstappen finished second, 4.351 seconds behind the Mercedes, while Norris took third, 5.089 seconds behind the winner.

Leclerc finished fourth ahead of Russell, with Lawson completing the top six.

Franco Colapinto took seventh for Alpine, while Piastri recovered impressively from his opening-lap damage to finish eighth.

Racing Bulls rookie Arvid Lindblad scored ninth, with Nico Hülkenberg completing the points-paying positions for Audi in 10th.

Four drivers retire

Esteban Ocon finished 11th for Haas, ahead of Alpine’s Pierre Gasly and Audi driver Gabriel Bortoleto.

Yuki Tsunoda was 14th, followed by Alexander Albon, Oliver Bearman, Fernando Alonso and Valtteri Bottas.

Four drivers failed to finish the inaugural Spanish Grand Prix.

Carlos Sainz retired after 43 laps at his home Grand Prix, while Sergio Pérez brought his Cadillac into the pits after 31 laps with a suspected water-system problem.

Stroll retired after 12 laps with his suspected brake issue, while Hamilton’s Ferrari stopped after just six laps.

The result gives Antonelli another major boost in his bid for the 2026 F1 World Championship, with the Mercedes driver now holding an 81-point advantage in the Drivers’ standings.

2026 FIA Formula 1 Spanish Grand Prix – Complete Race Results