Italian driver Kimi Antonelli has become the youngest Formula 1 world champion in history, at just 20 years old.
The Mercedes driver has won nine races this season. That meant finishing third at the Mexico City Grand Prix was enough to win him the title. The F1 title goes to the driver with the most points across the whole season. Max Verstappen from Red Bull won the race, and Lewis Hamilton from Ferrari came second.
The record was held by Sebastian Vettel, who was 23 when he won his first title in 2010. That made Vettel just over three years older than Antonelli. Antonelli is also the first Italian to win the F1 title in more than 70 years.
Antonelli said he was so emotional on the last lap that his tears made it hard to see. “It was very special and a lot of memories went through my mind in that moment,” he said.
Who is Kimi Antonelli?
His full name is Andrea Kimi Antonelli, and his parents ran a racing team business, so he grew up around cars. He started go-karting at age 10 and moved up to racing cars at 15, and he soon caught the attention of the Mercedes team.
This is only his second season in F1. Along the way he became the youngest driver to earn pole position, which means starting a race in first place on the grid.
There are still four races left this season, so Antonelli has more chances to add to his wins.
Te Reo Māori
Upoko: Ko Kimi Antonelli te toa F1 taiohi rawa o te ao
Ko Kimi Antonelli, he kaitaraiwa nō Itāria, te toa o te ao taiohi rawa i te hītori o Formula 1. E 20 noa iho ōna tau.
E iwa ngā whakataetae kua toa i te kaitaraiwa o Mercedes i tēnei tau. Nō reira, i tana taenga tuatoru ki te Mexico City Grand Prix, i riro i a ia te taitara. Ka riro te taitara F1 i te kaitaraiwa e nui rawa ana ōna piro i te roanga o te tau. Ko Max Verstappen o Red Bull i toa i te whakataetae, ā, ko Lewis Hamilton o Ferrari i tuarua.
I mua, nā Sebastian Vettel te rekoata. E 23 ōna tau i tana toanga tuatahi i te tau 2010. Nō reira, i pakeke ake a Vettel i a Antonelli, neke atu i te toru tau. Ko Antonelli hoki te tangata tuatahi nō Itāria kua riro i a ia te taitara F1 i roto i ngā tau neke atu i te 70.
I kī a Antonelli, i te kaha o ōna kare ā-roto i te rauna whakamutunga, kāore ia i kite pai nā ōna roimata. “He tino motuhake, ā, he maha ngā mahara i rere i roto i tōku hinengaro i taua wā,” tāna.
Ko wai a Kimi Antonelli?
Ko Andrea Kimi Antonelli tōna ingoa katoa. He pakihi rōpū reihi tā ōna mātua, nō reira i tipu ake ia i te taha o ngā motokā. I tīmata ia ki te reihi go-kart i te 10 ōna tau, ā, i te 15 ōna tau i neke ake ia ki ngā motokā reihi. Kāore i roa, ka aro mai te rōpū Mercedes ki a ia.
Ko tēnei noa tōna tau tuarua i F1. I tēnei tau, ko ia te kaitaraiwa taiohi rawa kua whiwhi i te pole position, arā, ka tīmata ia i te whakataetae i te tūranga tuatahi.
E whā tonu ngā whakataetae e toe ana i tēnei tau, nō reira he wā anō mō Antonelli ki te toa anō.
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