'There's no stopping Antonelli' - Hamilton says 2026 F1 title bid is over

Lewis Hamilton fell 101 points behind championship leader and Spanish Grand Prix winner Kimi Antonelli after retiring from Sunday's race in Madrid; Hamilton suffered a brake-pedal issue in the early stages that he believes has ended his title hopes

Lewis Hamilton appeared to give up hope of claiming a record eighth Formula 1 title this year as he said that "there's no stopping" Kimi Antonelli following the championship leader's latest victory at the Spanish Grand Prix.

Antonelli benefitted from some good fortune at the new all-new Madring circuit to claim his eighth victory of the season, while Hamilton retired early in the race after suffering a brake-pedal issue on his Ferrari.

The victory saw Antonelli extend his lead at the top of the standings over his Mercedes team-mate George Russell to 81 points, while Hamilton fell 101 points back in third, with Norris five points further adrift in fourth.

"I think there's no stopping him and Mercedes this year," Hamilton said of his former team during a post-race interview with Sky Sports F1 .

While Antonelli was fortunate on Sunday as the timing of a virtual safety car enabled him to leapfrog McLaren's Lando Norris, who had appeared on course for a comfortable victory, the 20-year-old Italian has driven with supreme consistency in just his second F1 campaign.

Even with the huge lead he has built, Antonelli is insisting that he is refusing to think about a maiden title and instead focusing on maintaining a race-by-race approach.

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Antonelli said: "I want to keep pushing race by race, keep delivering and keep enjoying it all the way and try to do my best every race and we will see where we end up at the end of the year."