The 19-year-old Italian’s third consecutive victory puts him 20 points – not far from a clear victory – ahead of team-mate George Russell, who could only finish fourth.
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Antonelli prevailed in a gripping race, initially leading a three-car fight that also included Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc, before the race came down to a fight between Mercedes and Norris.
The threatened rain, which had caused a three-hour early start of the race, never materialized, except for some points in the middle of the race, and the grand prix ran its course in dry conditions.
The key stories in Miami were:
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Another victory for Antonelli, who won three of the first four races to leave pre-season favorite Russell in the shade.
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A renaissance for McLaren after this weekend’s updates and strong push from Norris
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A complete career for Max Verstappen, including a rare mistake, a comeback and some races on the limit
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Many examples of the “yo-yo races” that have characterized this new season and that have divided opinions
Antonelli overcomes another bad start
Antonelli achieved this victory despite another bad start: he has now lost positions in all four grands prix and in the two sprint events this season.
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The Mercedes was overwhelmed by the fast Ferrari of Leclerc starting from fourth on one side and Verstappen on the other in the race to the first corner.
Verstappen went to the inside, but ran deep and as he fought to retain the lead, Leclerc squeezed him into turn two, and the four-time champion lost control on the curb, spinning a full 360 degrees with the entire field behind him.
He quickly regained control, but had fallen to tenth place and was now out of contention for victory, a blow on a weekend in which Red Bull appeared to be returning to competitiveness.
That left Leclerc leading Antonelli and Norris, and the yo-yo fights began, caused by different battery charging rates.
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Antonelli took the lead on lap four, only to be passed by Leclerc a lap later, before the safety car came out after two separate crashes on lap six.
Isack Hadjar crashed his Red Bull alone in the final chicane and Pierre Gasly’s Alpine was flipped by Liam Lawson’s Racing Bulls in the final corner.
The battle at the front continued after the restart, as Norris took second place from Antonelli and then quickly passed the Ferrari to take the lead.
Antonelli passed Leclerc a lap later and Mercedes and McLaren began to fight on their own.
Norris was leading with confidence, both drivers were waiting for the rain that was forecast shortly before the halfway point of the race, but when it started to look like it was not going to come, Mercedes jumped first.
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Antonelli was brought in to change tires on lap 24, Norris waited three more laps and McLaren was still wary of the weather.
It was the decisive point of the race. Antonelli gained enough time on his newer tires to be ahead when Norris came out of the pits.
Although the McLaren was within a second of the Mercedes for many laps, and Antonelli struggled with some gearshift issues and rear tire overheating, the Mercedes driver held off Norris and built a couple of seconds lead in the final laps.
“We got demoted, there’s no excuses,” Norris said. “We should have boxed first. As a team we have to be happy, I’m gutted to miss out on a win. Today it was possible. I didn’t have the pace to overcome it at the end.”
Isack Hadjar shows his frustration after falling in the Miami Grand Prix (Getty Images)
More to follow
