Andrea Kimi Antonelli lucked into victory at the 2026 Japanese Grand Prix to take the lead of the drivers’ championship.
Pole-sitter, Antonelli slipped to sixth at the start but benefitted from a safety car on lap 22 which allowed him to pit a lap later and re-join in the lead, following a heavy crash for Haas’ Oliver Bearman who escaped with no major injury to his right ankle.
The Italian subsequently cruised to a second consecutive victory from McLaren’s Oscar Piastri who finally started a race for the first time this season, after the Australian crashed on his way to the grid in Australia then suffered a technical issue in China.
Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc fought off George Russell to round out the podium in third after the latter momentary lost power on lap 37, which allowed Leclerc to pass him before the pair cleared Lewis Hamilton.
Lando Norris, Hamilton, Pierre Gasly, Max Verstappen, Liam Lawson and Esteban Ocon rounded out the top ten.
In the drivers’ standings, Antonelli at 19 years, seven months, and four days is F1’s youngest championship leader on 72 points with a nine-point lead over Russell.
Following a ten-minute delay due to barrier repairs after a Porsche Carrera Cup crash, Antonelli got a slow start and slumped to sixth as Piastri launched past the Mercedes pair to lead from Leclerc and Norris, whilst Russell slipped to fourth ahead of Hamilton.
Russell proceeded to bide his time and quickly cleared Norris and Leclerc on laps 3 and four respectively, before he caught and passed Piastri on the inside of the entry to Casio Triangle at the end of Lap 8.
Piastri however strategically got a slipstream on the Brit and repassed him over the line to retake the lead, which he held until he pitted on lap 19 whilst Russell followed suit three laps later.
Antonelli meanwhile cleared Norris on lap 11 at Casio Triangle on the inside line then replicated his move on Leclerc on lap 15, yet he got twitchy on the exit on that occasion which allowed Leclerc to repass him for third at the start of the next lap.
Norris meanwhile pitted on lap 17 in an attempt to undercut Leclerc who pitted a lap later in a successful response to cover the Brit off.
Antonelli meanwhile stayed out and inherited the lead after Russell’s stop which gave him a free stop on lap 23 after the safety car was deployed, due to a heavy sideway crash for Bearman at Spoon two laps earlier as the Brit took evading action to avoid Alpine’s Franco Colapinto in a difference of closing speeds.
Haas subsequently confirmed on X that Bearman has ‘sustained no fractures’ from the accident.
Racing resumed at the end of lap 27 with Antonelli able to scurry away into the distance from Piastri whilst Russell lost third into the first corner to Hamilton, who subsequently proceeded to hunt down Piastri but the Aussie managed to keep the Brit behind under immense pressure.
Russell meanwhile suffered a momentary loss of power on lap 37 into Spoon which allowed Leclerc to pass him for fourth, before the Monegasque then swept round the outside of Hamilton into Turn 2 on lap 42 for third.
Hamilton then lost fourth a lap later to Russell after he suffered a momentary loss of power on the main straight.
Russell subsequently passed Leclerc into Casio Triangle on Lap 50 for third whilst Norris made the same move on Hamilton for fifth, but the pair were repassed by the Ferrari pair into the first corner on lap 51.
Norris however repassed Hamilton into Casio on on that same lap and fought off the seven-time champion for fifth.
Leclerc meanwhile fought off Russell by 0.484 seconds for third at the checkered flag to round off the podium.
F1 now takes a five-week spring break due to the cancellations of April’s Bahrain and Saudi Arabian Grands Prix because of the Middle-East conflict, although there is hope that the Saudi Arabian GP will be rescheduled for later in the season. ]
The grid consequently will regather in Miami on the weekend of 1-3 May for the Miami GP.
| Position | Driver | Team | Laps | Time |
| 1 | Andrea Kimi Antonelli | Mercedes | 53 | + |
| 2 | Oscar Piastri | McLaren | 53 | + 13.722 |
| 3 | Charles Leclerc | Ferrari | 53 | + 15.270 |
| 4 | George Russell | Mercedes | 53 | + 15.754 |
| 5 | Lando Norris | McLaren | 53 | + 23.479 |
| 6 | Lewis Hamilton | Ferrari | 53 | + 25.037 |
| 7 | Pierre Gasly | Alpine | 53 | + 32.340 |
| 8 | Max Verstappen | Red Bull | 53 | + 32.677 |
| 9 | Liam Lawson | Racing Bulls | 53 | + 50.180 |
| 10 | Esteban Ocon | Haas | 53 | + 51.216 |
| 11 | Nico Hulkenberg | Audi | 53 | + 52.280 |
| 12 | Isack Hadjar | Red Bull | 53 | + 56.154 |
| 13 | Gabriel Bortoleto | Audi | 53 | + 59.078 |
| 14 | Arvid Lindblad | Racing Bulls | 53 | + 59.848 |
| 15 | Carlos Sainz | Williams | 53 | + 65.008 |
| 16 | Franco Colapinto | Alpine | 53 | + 65.773 |
| 17 | Sergio Perez | Cadillac | 53 | + 92.453 |
| 18 | Fernando Alonso | Aston Martin | 52 | + 1 Lap |
| 19 | Valtteri Bottas | Cadillac | 52 | + 1 Lap |
| 20 | Alex Albon | Williams | 51 | + 2 Laps |
| RET | Lance Stroll | Aston Martin | 30 | Water |
| RET | Oliver Bearman | Haas | 20 | Spin |