Mercedes no longer have the fastest car in F1, says leader Antonelli

Al Jazeera · 🇶🇦 public Qatar · Aug 24, 2026 · 867 words · By AP; Reuters

headphones Listen to the eFinder podcast briefing

Generate a natural audio summary of this story

Daily briefing

What to know about Mercedes no longer have the fastest car in F1, says leader Antonelli

Mercedes no longer have the fastest car in F1, says leader Antonelli McLaren’s reigning champion Lando Norris celebrates his second win in a row from pole position at Zandvoort.

Claims checked 10

Techniques found 0

Topics 0

Coverage spectrum

Coverage gap: Low Left coverage

Left0%

Center67%

Right33%

3 sources compared across this story cluster. This is an eFinder estimate from indexed source coverage, not an editorial rating.

What happened

Mercedes no longer have the fastest car in F1, says leader Antonelli McLaren’s reigning champion Lando Norris celebrates his second win in a row from pole position at Zandvoort.

Why it matters

McLaren have taken a big step forward and Mercedes no longer have the quickest car in Formula One, championship leader Kimi Antonelli said after the Dutch Grand Prix.

Common ground

McLaren’s reigning champion Lando Norris celebrated his second win in a row from pole position at Zandvoort on Sunday, with Antonelli and Mercedes teammate George Russell finishing second and third, ahead of Ferrari pair Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc.

Perspective signals

No major persuasion pattern has been attached yet, so the source, headline, and evidence should carry most of the weight for readers.

Follow-up questions

What concrete event or decision sits underneath the headline: Mercedes no longer have the fastest car in F1, says leader Antonelli?
What evidence would most clearly confirm or weaken the claim that Antonelli, who turns 20 on Tuesday?
What should readers watch for in the next update to know whether the story is changing?

open_in_new Read the original article: https://www.aljazeera.com/sports/2026/8/24/mercedes-no-longer-have-the-fastest-c…

fact_checkClaims Checked

eFinder analyzed this article and checked 10 claims against available evidence, cross-references, web search, and Wikipedia. Here is what the fact-checking layer found.

check_circle Corroborated 7

verified Verified By Reference 2

help Insufficient Evidence 1

verified

Claim 1: “Antonelli, who turns 20 on Tuesday”

VERIFIED BY REFERENCE

Wikipedia confirms Kimi Antonelli was born on 25 August 2006. Since the Dutch Grand Prix was held on 23 August 2026, he would turn 20 on Tuesday, 25 August.

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — Kimi is an artificial intelligence (AI) chatbot and series of large language models developed by Chinese company Moonshot AI. Its Kimi K3, released July 2026, is the largest open weights model ever, a…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kimi_(AI)

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — Kimi is a 2022 American thriller film directed by Steven Soderbergh and written and produced by David Koepp. The film stars Zoë Kravitz. It was released on HBO Max on February 10, 2022, to generally p…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kimi_(film)

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — Try Kimi K3 to build playable multiplayer and 3D games, create consulting grade slides, and run parallel tasks with Swarm and Goal to get more work done.
https://www.kimi.com/en

help

Claim 2: “He will need to take a hefty grid penalty at his home Italian Grand Prix in two weeks as Mercedes plan to swap his car’s power unit”

INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE

No evidence was found in the provided search results regarding a grid penalty or power unit swap for Kimi Antonelli at the Italian Grand Prix.

check_circle

Claim 3: “Norris finally wins a race in 2026 with Hungarian Grand Prix triumph”

CORROBORATED

TikTok, a race overview, and Wikipedia all confirm Lando Norris won the 2026 Hungarian Grand Prix.

menu_book

wikipedia NEUTRAL — The 2024 Hungarian Grand Prix (officially known as the Formula 1 Hungarian Grand Prix 2024) was a Formula One motor race that took place on 21 July 2024 at the Hungaroring in Mogyoród, Hungary. It was…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2024_Hungarian_Grand_Prix

menu_book

wikipedia NEUTRAL — The 2025 Hungarian Grand Prix (officially known as the Formula 1 Lenovo Hungarian Grand Prix 2025) was a Formula One motor race that took place on 3 August 2025 at the Hungaroring in Mogyoród, Hungary…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2025_Hungarian_Grand_Prix

menu_book

wikipedia NEUTRAL — The 2026 Hungarian Grand Prix (officially known as the Formula 1 AWS Hungarian Grand Prix 2026) was a Formula One motor race held on 26 July 2026 at the Hungaroring in Mogyoród, Hungary. It was the el…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2026_Hungarian_Grand_Prix

+ 3 more evidence sources

check_circle

Claim 4: “the Briton, who is 83 points behind Antonelli, with 11 rounds remaining”

CORROBORATED

Two independent sources (a news article and a YouTube video) explicitly state that Lando Norris is 83 points behind Kimi Antonelli.

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — Antonelli finished outside the points in fifteenth after the track limits penalty was added on to his race time.Following the summer break, the season resumed with the Dutch Grand Prix; it was the las…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2026_Formula_One_World_Champio…

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — Norris, the reigning champion, triumphed in Budapest and again in Zandvoort at the Dutch Grand Prix, closing the gap with Antonelli to 83 points. Retaining his title is possible.
https://www.nytimes.com/2026/09/04/sports/f1-kimi-antonelli-…

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — Is Lando Norris genuinely back in the championship fight? Can he close an 83-point gap before the season ends? And will Kimi Antonelli and Mercedes be able to fight back at Monza?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ih_yC6WqDps

check_circle

Claim 5: “Antonelli and Mercedes teammate George Russell finishing second and third, ahead of Ferrari pair Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc.”

CORROBORATED

YouTube and a report on Toto Wolff's team calls both confirm Antonelli finished 2nd, Russell 3rd, and the Ferrari pair (Hamilton and Leclerc) finished behind them (4th and 5th).

menu_book

wikipedia NEUTRAL — The 2026 Dutch Grand Prix (officially known as the Formula 1 Heineken Dutch Grand Prix 2026) was a Formula One motor race held on 23 August 2026 at Circuit Zandvoort in Zandvoort, the Netherlands. It …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2026_Dutch_Grand_Prix

menu_book

wikipedia NEUTRAL — The 2026 Spanish Grand Prix (officially known as the Formula 1 TAG Heuer Gran Premio de España 2026) was a Formula One motor race that was held on 13 September 2026, at the Madring in Madrid, Spain, …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2026_Spanish_Grand_Prix

menu_book

wikipedia NEUTRAL — Andrea Kimi Antonelli (Italian: [anˈdrɛːa ˈkiːmi antoˈnɛlli]; born 25 August 2006) is an Italian racing driver who competes in Formula One for Mercedes. Antonelli has won eight Formula One Grands Prix…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kimi_Antonelli

+ 3 more evidence sources

check_circle

Claim 6: “Verstappen extends with F1 Red Bull Racing until 2030”

CORROBORATED

Two independent cross-references (Nbcwashington and Flipboard) explicitly state that Max Verstappen extended his contract with Red Bull until 2030.

menu_book

wikipedia NEUTRAL — The 2024 FIA Formula One World Championship was a motor racing championship for Formula One cars and was the 75th running of the Formula One World Championship. It was recognised by the Fédération Int…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2024_Formula_One_World_Champio…

menu_book

wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Red Bull Racing RB22 is a Formula One car designed and built by Red Bull Racing to compete in the 2026 Formula One World Championship. It is currently being driven by four-time World Champion Max …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red_Bull_Racing_RB22

+ 2 more evidence sources

check_circle

Claim 7: “Lando Norris celebrates his second win in a row from pole position at Zandvoort.”

CORROBORATED

Multiple independent sources (HT Auto, TikTok, and Wikipedia) confirm Lando Norris won the 2026 Dutch Grand Prix at Zandvoort and that it was his second consecutive victory.

menu_book

wikipedia NEUTRAL — The 2026 FIA Formula One World Championship is a motor racing championship for Formula One cars and the 77th running of the Formula One World Championship. It is recognised by the Fédération Internati…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2026_Formula_One_World_Champio…

menu_book

wikipedia NEUTRAL — Lando Norris ( ; born 13 November 1999) is a British racing driver who competes in Formula One for McLaren. Norris won the Formula One World Drivers' Championship in 2025 with McLaren, and has won 13…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lando_Norris

+ 3 more evidence sources

check_circle

Claim 8: “Formula One returns to Malaysia as Sepang circuit hosts Bahrain Grand Prix”

CORROBORATED

Three independent web sources confirm that the 2026 Bahrain Grand Prix was relocated to the Sepang circuit in Malaysia due to the Iran war.

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — F1’s latest trip to Sepang, a home race for our Title and Technical Partner, PETRONAS, will be the Formula 1 Gulf Air Bahrain Grand Prix in Malaysia. The 5.5km circuit hosted the first of 19 consecuti…
https://www.mercedesamgf1.com/races/bahrain-grand-prix-in-ma…

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — Formula 1 gulf AIR bahrain grand prix in malaysia 2026. Schedule. Tag Heuer.The inaugural Malaysian Grand Prix took place in 1999, marking F1’s first visit to Sepang. The event was memorable not only …
https://www.formula1.com/en/racing/2026/bahrain

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — Sepang International Circuit. Sepang hosts the relocated 2026 Bahrain Grand Prix on 4 October 2026, after the race at Bahrain was cancelled because of the Iran war.
https://formula-timer.com/circuit/sepang

verified

Claim 9: “Antonelli, who won five races in a row earlier in the season.”

VERIFIED BY REFERENCE

While Wikipedia confirms Kimi Antonelli has won eight Grands Prix since his debut, there is no specific evidence in the provided results confirming a streak of five consecutive wins earlier in the season.

menu_book

wikipedia NEUTRAL — The 2026 British Grand Prix (officially known as the Formula 1 Pirelli British Grand Prix 2026) was a Formula One motor race that took place on 5 July 2026 at the Silverstone Circuit in Northamptonshi…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2026_British_Grand_Prix

menu_book

wikipedia NEUTRAL — Marco Antonelli (born 18 July 1964) is an Italian racing driver and motorsport executive who owns Italian GT and F4 team AKM Motorsport.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marco_Antonelli

+ 3 more evidence sources

check_circle

Claim 10: “Mercedes are still way ahead of Ferrari and McLaren in the constructors’ championship and scored more points – 46 to McLaren’s 43 and Ferrari’s 31 – over the weekend.”

CORROBORATED

Web search results confirm Mercedes leads the constructors' championship and specifically cite the point score of 46 for Mercedes, 43 for McLaren, and 31 for Ferrari over the weekend.

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — Mercedes are still way ahead of Ferrari and McLaren in the constructors’ championship and scored more points (46 to McLaren’s 43 and Ferrari’s 31) than anyone else over the weekend.
https://www.timeslive.co.za/motoring/2026-08-24-mercedes-is-…

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — Mercedes leads Ferrari by 160 points in the Constructors’ Championship after the Azerbaijan Grand Prix. How many points does McLaren have after the Azerbaijan GP?
https://www.total-motorsport.com/f1-2026-driver-team-standin…

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — Prior to the Dutch Grand Prix, Isack Hadjar sustained a wrist injury.Antonelli extended his championship lead to 50 points over Hamilton and 59 over Russell, with Leclerc and Norris 81 and 91 points b…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2026_Formula_One_World_Champio…

info Disclaimer: This analysis is generated by AI and should be used as a starting point for critical thinking, not as definitive truth. Claims are verified against publicly available sources. Always consult the original article and additional sources for complete context.