F1 champions laud Kimi Antonelli over pertinent question

Lando Norris and Max Verstappen have both picked out Kimi Antonelli as F1's standout driver of the opening half of the 2026 season.

Antonelli leads the drivers' championship after 11 rounds, having taken six victories and nine podiums for Mercedes.

His advantage was underlined again at the Hungarian Grand Prix, where he recovered from a grid penalty to finish third behind race winner Norris and Verstappen.

Asked at the post-race press conference to assess who had delivered the best performance relative to the machinery and opportunities available, Norris initially resisted singling out one driver before pointing towards his Mercedes rival.

"I think we'll probably all just say ourselves," Norris replied to media, including RacingNews365. "I feel like you can't really compare in these things. You can't really compare teams against teams.

"I think you have to say Kimi, as a complete package. They have a great car, and he's done an incredible job, convincingly beating his team-mate every single weekend. So, when you're talking about a championship, you have to give credit to Kimi.

"But, you know, when I have a good car... I feel like no one’s going to beat me. So, we'll probably all say each other, but it just depends on how good the car is and things like that."

Norris has endured a difficult title defence, with victory in Budapest his first grand prix win of the season. The McLaren driver nonetheless produced a statement performance at the Hungaroring, beating Verstappen by more than 15 seconds.

"I think you probably have, in front of you, three of the best drivers in Formula 1," the British driver added. "There are still plenty of others, but it’s impossible to really compare these things.

"I think everyone who’s sat here is doing an incredible job and probably getting the most out of the car, and that’s what you can really ask for."

Verstappen and Antonelli's view

Verstappen, meanwhile, has been forced to extract more from a Red Bull package that has not consistently matched the Mercedes and McLaren machinery, but he agreed with Norris' assessment of Antonelli.

"Yeah, I think I agree with most of what Lando has said," Verstappen chipped in. "I think, if you look at the front, Kimi has done a really good job. Really strong, really solid, being the strongest in the team.

"I think, if he just keeps it going – of course, he’s also been very unlucky sometimes, so that’s been, I guess, a bit of a shame – but as a 19-year-old, so far, I think he’s been rock solid. So, that's really impressive to see as an outsider.

"For me, it's definitely been a bit of a jungle this year, but I'm just trying to enjoy it where I can," the Dutchman continued.

"Of course, when the car is a bit nicer to drive, you can enjoy it a little bit more, even though, most of the time, you don’t really enjoy it. But that has more to do with other stuff; when you’re a bit flat on battery.

"But, overall, a very strong performance. It's nice to see. He's, first of all, a nice guy and a very strong driver, so that's a good combination."

Antonelli, however, was unwilling to accept the plaudits without qualification.

"Well, I don't really like judging, but I feel like I've done a good first half," the 19-year-old responded. "But, as Lando and Max said, it's really hard to compare car to car.

"I think there's still a long way before I reach their level, the two drivers next to me. So, I feel like I'm doing a great job, but there's still a long way to reach their level. So, still lots of work to do."