Kimi Antonelli joined an exclusive group of drivers following his victory in the 2026 Chinese Grand Prix.
Beating Mercedes teammate George Russell and seven-time title Lewis Hamilton to the flag, Antonelli became the second-youngest F1 race winner in world championship history.
F1 statistics: Youngest ever Grand Prix winners
Want more PlanetF1.com coverage? Add us as a preferred source on Google to your favourites list for news you can trust
Correct as of 2026 Chinese Grand Prix. * Denotes driver still active.
Formula 1’s youngest ever race winners include a host of drivers still on the grid today, as the drivers’ debut ages have become younger in the 21st century.
It remains a rarefied achievement for a driver to stand on the top step of the podium at all, let alone at a young age – but here are the drivers who were the youngest to ever win a Formula 1 Grand Prix when they did so for the first time.
1: Max Verstappen
Age: 18 years, 228 days
Race: 2016 Spanish Grand Prix
Total F1 victories: 71*
Max Verstappen arrived at Red Bull in something of a whirlwind, promoted mid-season in only his second year in Formula 1 as he swapped seats with Daniil Kvyat.
He arrived in Spain for his first race at Red Bull in a car he had not yet driven, but that did not stop him from placing his car on the second row, just behind new teammate Daniel Ricciardo.
A dramatic crash between the dominant Mercedes duo of Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg on the first lap helped his chances, though he faced the fast-charging Kimi Raikkonen for Ferrari behind as the two battled for victory.
In the end, the new Red Bull driver held out to claim an unlikely win in his first race at Red Bull – which has proven to be the first of many.
2: Kimi Antonelli
Age: 19 years, 202 days
Race: 2026 Chinese Grand Prix
Total F1 victories: 1*
Kimi Antonelli arrived in Formula 1 as one of the sport’s youngest ever drivers, filling unenviable shoes as the driver to try and replace Sir Lewis Hamilton at Mercedes after his departure for Ferrari.
At the second race of his second season, problems for teammate George Russell in qualifying opened the door for Antonelli to take a potential pole position – duly putting in a worthy lap and becoming the youngest polesitter Formula 1 had ever seen.
He was overtaken by Hamilton at the start in Shanghai, but retook the lead by lap 2 and he never looked back – earning pole and fastest lap, the only thing preventing a Grand Chelem was Hamilton’s lead on the first lap. Without that, his first win would have come in truly dominant fashion.
He arrived in Formula 1 highly rated, and after this success, he appears to have a long career ahead of him.
3: Sebastian Vettel
Age: 21 years, 73 days
Race: 2008 Italian Grand Prix
Total F1 victories: 53
In the wet at Monza, Sebastian Vettel showed his future potential by putting his midfield Toro Rosso on pole position. Wet weather is the great leveller in Formula 1, after all.
The rain was still present on Grand Prix Sunday in Italy, and the young German put that confidence in the wet to good use by building up a healthy lead over McLaren’s Heikki Kovalainen.
His win was not only emotional for him, but for his team – given its Italian heritage as former backmarkers, Minardi.
Vettel looked flawless all weekend at Red Bull’s sister team, and he became Formula 1’s youngest-ever victor at the time – earning a promotion to the senior Red Bull squad in 2009.
4: Charles Leclerc
Age: 21 years, 320 days
Race: 2019 Belgian Grand Prix
Total F1 victories: 8*
Charles Leclerc became the first Monegasque driver to ever win a Grand Prix, doing so at Spa-Francorchamps after an emotional weekend.
Leclerc, who impressed enough in a single season at Sauber to have been promoted to Ferrari, took pole by a whopping seven tenths of a second, and under the backdrop of multiple tributes to Formula 2’s Anthoine Hubert, whose tragic death came in a feature race accident earlier in the weekend, Formula 1 went racing in sombre circumstances.
The Ferrari driver pulled away at the front in what became a lights-to-flag victory for the young driver, keeping the Mercedes of Lewis Hamilton at bay as he took the win by just under a second.
Muted celebrations took place after the race in the wake of Hubert’s death, however, with no champagne sprayed on the podium.
5: Fernando Alonso
Age: 22 years, 26 days
Race: 2003 Hungarian Grand Prix
Total F1 victories: 32*
Fernando Alonso had shown his promise in his debut season at Minardi, but at Renault in 2003, earned his first victory with a clinical performance at the Hungaroring.
Comfortably on pole, the young Spaniard was rarely troubled on his way to a victory that made him the youngest winner in Formula 1 history at the time, breaking the next driver’s 51-year record in the process.
Such was his performance level, too, Alonso lapped Renault teammate Jarno Trulli in the process in Hungary, as well as reigning World Champion, Michael Schumacher.
He went on to win by 16 seconds from a fellow impressive youngster in Kimi Raikkonen.
6: Troy Ruttman
Age: 22 years, 80 days
Race: 1952 Indianapolis 500
Total F1 victories: 1
One of a host of one-time winners in Formula 1, Troy Ruttman took victory at the 1952 Indianapolis 500 during the race’s inclusion on the Formula 1 calendar, between 1950 and 1960.
Driving for J. C. Agajanian, Ruttman completed the 200 laps of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in what was also the last dirt track car to win at the circuit, taking the chequered flag by four seconds.
While compatriot Bill Vukovich for three-quarters of the race, broken steering forced him out of contention as Ruttman converted a front-row grid start into victory at the Brickyard.
He remains the youngest winner of the Indy 500 to this day, and was Formula 1’s youngest ever race winner for more than 50 years, until Alonso took on that distinction.
Ruttman did enter one Grand Prix outside the 500, driving for Maserati at the 1958 French Grand Prix. He finished 10th, though the race is not fondly remembered due to the death of Ferrari’s Luigi Musso, who was critically injured after going off course and crashing into a ditch at the extremely fast Reims circuit.
7: Bruce McLaren
Age: 22 years, 104 days
Race: 1959 United States Grand Prix
Total F1 victories: 4
Bruce McLaren qualified ninth at Sebring for what was the title decider in 1959, though the Cooper driver was not in contention for top honours.
In an attritional race which saw a huge number of retirements, one of the title contenders and polesitter, Stirling Moss, saw his race end in the early stages with a transmission failure.
Fellow Antipodean, Jack Brabham, had led with McLaren in second for much of the race, the two teammates ran 1-2 until the final lap when Brabham’s car ran out of fuel just two corners from the end.
McLaren was waved past by Brabham to urge him on, with McLaren crossing the line under a second ahead of the fast-approaching Maurice Tringtignant.
Brabham took a fourth-place finish, making him World Champion of 1959.
8: Lewis Hamilton
Age: 22 years, 154 days
Race: 2007 Canadian Grand Prix
Total F1 victories: 105*
Lewis Hamilton arrived in Formula 1 having been highly-rated by McLaren and the reigning GP2 champion – but 2007 was expected to be a building year as he gathered experience in the sport, with reigning two-time World Champion, Fernando Alonso, being expected to be number one driver.
However, he was on the podium in each of his first five races, and a first win would come his way in Canada after taking his first career pole.
He had lots to navigate in what proved a thrilling race, too, with four Safety Car periods, including a huge crash for BMW’s Robert Kubica, two disqualifications and much more action in a Formula 1 classic.
Hamilton, though, navigated his afternoon serenely by comparison to earn his first Grand Prix victory.
Hamilton has since become the most successful Formula 1 driver of all time in terms of race wins, being the only one to notch more than a century.
9: Oscar Piastri
Age: 23 years, 76 days
Race: 2024 Hungarian Grand Prix
Total F1 victories: 9*
Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris had locked out the front row at the Hungaroring, but Piastri’s taking of the chequered flag had been in doubt in the closing stages of the race.
The two McLarens had battled on track and, while Piastri held the advantage of track position, the team pitted Norris first to cover off a potential undercut attempt by Lewis Hamilton.
What this did, however, is it gave Norris the advantage of fresh tyres before Piastri came in, meaning the Australian ended up behind his teammate after the stops.
Despite the Briton’s protests, he eventually moved over to allow his teammate through again in the closing laps to re-establish the previous order, which in turn gave Piastri his first win in Formula 1.
10: Kimi Raikkonen
Age: 23 years, 157 days
Race: 2003 Malaysian Grand Prix
Total F1 victories: 21
Kimi Raikkonen was in only his second season in Formula 1 when the Malaysian Grand Prix took place, for which the Iceman had qualified seventh.
Having picked his way up to fourth, Raikkonen made use of the overcut at the end of the first stint to make his way up to a net first once the first pit stops had taken place.
A quick second stint enabled the McLaren driver to move away from Fernando Alonso behind, and at the time of his second stop built up a 53-second lead on the rest of the field.
Moving his way through the pack to take the lead for the majority of the race, Raikkonen was able to see the chequered flag first in what was only his 36th Grand Prix in Formula 1.
Want to be the first to know exclusive information from the F1 paddock? Join our broadcast channel on WhatsApp to get the scoop on the latest developments from our team of accredited journalists.
You can also subscribe to the PlanetF1 YouTube channel for exclusive features, hear from our paddock journalists with stories from the heart of Formula 1 and much more!
Read next: F1 overtaking rules: Guidelines, rules of engagement and possible penalties