Antonelli: “Reliability has cost us important points”
The 2026 Formula 1 World Championship reaches another crucial stage this weekend with the Belgian Grand Prix at Spa-Francorchamps. During Thursday’s FIA press conference, championship leader Kimi Antonelli discussed Mercedes’ expectations for the weekend, the increasingly intense title battle, his relationship with teammate George Russell, and the valuable advice he recently received from tennis legend Roger Federer.
The championship leader previews Spa
Reflecting on Mercedes’ recent performances, Antonelli described Silverstone as an encouraging weekend for the team, while stressing that the competition remains extremely close heading into the tenth round of the season.
“At Silverstone we were competitive in every session, and that’s important,” Antonelli explained. “My job is to give my maximum in every area that I can control and deliver the best performance possible. Everything else is outside my hands. I’ve had quite a few unlucky situations this season, incidents that I couldn’t control, but that’s part of motorsport. The team is working incredibly hard to make sure those problems don’t happen again.
“What do I expect at Spa? We believe we’ll be competitive, although Ferrari surprised everyone at Silverstone, and they always seem to find a little extra performance in qualifying. We also have to pay close attention to Red Bull and McLaren. Personally, though, I’m focused only on myself.”
Roger Federer’s advice left a lasting impression
Antonelli also reflected on his recent visit to Wimbledon, where he had the opportunity to spend time with Roger Federer in what he described as one of the highlights of his summer break.
“The conversation with Federer at Wimbledon was incredible,” the Mercedes driver said. “Over the last two or three years I’ve become a big tennis fan, partly thanks to getting to know Jannik Sinner. Talking with Roger was fantastic. We spoke about his playing career, about life in general and also about my racing. He’s an incredibly humble and open person, and it was a wonderful experience. He also gave me one piece of advice: take things one race at a time and always keep your emotions under control.”
Antonelli grades his first half of the season
Asked to evaluate his own performances so far in 2026, the 19-year-old was pleased with his progress but admitted he has not been flawless.
“I wouldn’t give myself a 10,” Antonelli admitted. “For example, there was the mistake during FP3 in Australia, where I almost missed qualifying. In Japan I won, but I made a really poor start. More recently there was the Sprint mistake in Miami, and then qualifying in Barcelona and Austria. Overall, I’d give myself an 8.5.”
Reliability has become Mercedes’ biggest concern
The Italian driver concluded by addressing the championship battle and the reliability problems that have affected both Mercedes drivers throughout the season.
“George Russell has certainly had some unlucky moments, but so have I,” Antonelli said. “That’s motorsport, and we’ve all seen how quickly things can change. Reliability hasn’t been one of our strengths this season, unlike Ferrari, but everyone at the factory is working extremely hard to make sure these problems don’t happen again. There’s no doubt that both George and I have lost some very important championship points because of reliability issues.”
With Ferrari continuing to apply pressure in both championships thanks to its consistency and reliability, Antonelli knows Mercedes cannot afford many more setbacks. As the title fight intensifies heading into the second half of the season, eliminating technical problems could prove just as important as finding outright performance.
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