• Championship leader wins from Leclerc and Verstappen

• 20-year-old should win title in next race in Mexico

With a calm assurance that belies his tender years, Kimi Antonelli delivered another masterclass at the US Grand Prix, ensuring that while he could not quite seal the Formula One world championship in the Texas sunshine, it is a coronation that is surely only delayed for a week. The 20-year-old has made it almost a formality that he will seal the deal at the next round in Mexico.

Antonelli’s dominant victory in Austin at the Circuit of the Americas, with a controlled and composed drive to beat the Ferrari of Charles Leclerc into second place and the Red Bull of Max Verstappen into third, was described by the Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff as “one small step” towards the title in what has been a season of giant leaps for the Italian.

• Antonelli has 102-point lead over George Russell

• Needs to be 125 points in front after Sunday’s race

Kimi Antonelli claimed pole position for the US Grand Prix with a hugely impressive lap for Mercedes at the Circuit of the Americas. In beating Red Bull’s Max Verstappen into second place, Antonelli did exactly what was required to give him the chance to close out his first world championship title this weekend.

Isack Hadjar did well to secure third for Red Bull, with Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton in fourth and fifth for Ferrari, and Antonelli’s Mercedes teammate George Russell in sixth.