Lewis Hamilton praises Kimi Antonelli's historic F1 title: "So well deserved"

Lewis Hamilton has sent his warm congratulations to the newly crowned Formula 1 world champion, Kimi Antonelli, while reviewing his own performance and internal team challenges at the 2026 Mexico Grand Prix.

The British driver secured a strong second-place finish at the Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez after he secured pole position in qualifying. However, the dominant talking point coming out of the Ferrari garage after the race was not just the podium finish, but the wheel-to-wheel battle Hamilton had with teammate Charles Leclerc.

On the opening lap, Hamilton and Leclerc went toe-to-toe. The Monegasque driver initially came out on top, though he later picked up a five-second penalty after running off track at Turns 4 and 5.

Hamilton eventually reclaimed the upper hand, allowing him to finish on the podium alongside Antonelli, who secured the 2026 F1 drivers' crown with a composed third-place finish for Mercedes.

Reflecting on the historic championship moment and his weekend on social media, Hamilton offered glowing praise for his young successor.

“Let me start with a huge congratulations to the new champion, Kimi Antonelli,” Hamilton wrote on Instagram.

“To have seen your journey so closely and to be there celebrating with you, was a highlight of my year. So well deserved and a record that will stand for a long time. It was great to see your team at Mercedes celebrating with you. Enjoy this moment, keep your family close, keep your passion and your energy.”

Despite sharing in the celebratory atmosphere for Antonelli, Hamilton turned his attention inward to address a missed opportunity for Ferrari at the Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez.

“Our own weekend was one full of challenges,” Hamilton continued. “We had a lot thrown at us, but our mechanics and engineers did an incredible job. We’ve grown so much together this year, and that progress has taken a huge effort from everyone on the track and back at the factory. That’s why losing what could’ve been a win hurts so much. We need to grasp every opportunity we have, so it’s incredibly frustrating, and I can’t pretend otherwise.

“I know what goes into giving us that opportunity. The standard the team holds itself to, the standard I hold myself to, the standard the fans expect. Everyone deserves to see us at our best and win. We’re all here to race and want to win. Battling is necessary, but when that battle costs the team, we have to be honest about it and learn from it. We can push each other to the limit and still honour the responsibility to everyone who put us on that track.

“I’ll keep giving everything I have. My belief in this team hasn’t changed, and neither has my responsibility to help us get this right. Stick with us. I’m only just getting started with this team, and we have so much more to come.”