Antonelli went into the race knowing that effectively he only had to stay out of trouble to ensure he secured the title.
The only way he could not do so was if Russell or Hamilton won the race. Even then, he needed only to finish ninth if it was his team-mate or 10th if it was Hamilton.
Antonelli ran a steady fourth in the first stint, behind Leclerc, Verstappen and Hamilton, moving into the lead as others made their pit stops in front of him, and then pitted for fresh tyres just a lap before the safety car which was why Mercedes had elongated his final stint.
A lap later, Valtteri Bottas' Cadillac crashed on lap 45 when its front suspension failed under braking for Turn One, leading initially to a safety car and then the race being stopped when it became clear how long it was going to take to repair the barriers.
At the restart, Leclerc locked his left front wheel heavily as Verstappen and Hamilton battled for the lead in front of him, and Antonelli passed him at the start of the next lap.
There was another safety car with 12 laps to go when Arvid Lindblad crashed his Racing Bulls after a collision with McLaren's Oscar Piastri.
When the race restarted with seven laps to go, Antonelli ran at the back of a three-car train with Verstappen and Hamilton, none of the three able to make any moves.
They crossed the line nose to tail, less than two seconds covering all three cars.
More to follow.
