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Antonelli came within one race of Formula 1's youngest championship Sunday, winning the U.S. Grand Prix in Austin.

The 20-year-old Italian leads the standings by 123 points over Mercedes teammate George Russell and by 124 over Ferrari's Lewis Hamilton. Only 125 points remain across the final five races, according to NBC News and ABC Australia.

He claimed pole by 0.179 seconds over Red Bull's Max Verstappen. Teammate Isack Hadjar started third, Ferrari's Charles Leclerc fourth, BBC News reported. Antonelli led every lap from there, NBC News said.

Mercedes gambled on one pit stop. Verstappen and Leclerc each stopped twice, betting they could catch Antonelli late. Leclerc passed Verstappen for second with five laps left, but neither closed the gap. Antonelli won by more than 13 seconds, ABC Australia reported. McLaren's Lando Norris, also running one stop, held up the chasing pair long enough to blunt their run, the outlet said.

Russell finished eighth after a five-second penalty for leaving the track and gaining an advantage on the first lap, NBC News reported. Hamilton finished fourth. Both remain mathematically alive for the title.

Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, presented the winner's trophy and was booed by the crowd, NBC News reported. The boos turned to cheers once Antonelli lifted it.

Nine wins now this season. A title in Mexico City would make Antonelli F1's youngest champion, breaking a record Sebastian Vettel set at 23 in 2010, NBC News reported. It would also make him the first Italian world champion since Alberto Ascari in 1953. F1 put attendance in Austin at 467,000 for the weekend, NBC News said.

Antonelli can clinch the championship next Sunday in Mexico City if he finishes ninth or higher, or if Russell and Hamilton both fail to win the race, ABC Australia reported.

"It was a result we needed," Antonelli said after the race. "We're very close, but yeah, we're trying to finish on a high, and hopefully we can finish it very soon."

Russell is fighting Hamilton for second in the standings. He said the team's priority is the constructors' title. "Obviously, I'd like to finish best of the best," he said. "But P2, P3, P5 is not champion."