Andrea Kimi Antonelli, a young Italian talent in Formula 1, is experiencing a season of highs and lows. After an extraordinary start to the year, with results far exceeding expectations—most notably his debut in Melbourne where he climbed to fourth place in a remarkable wet-weather performance—the 18-year-old driver from Bologna is now going through a more challenging period. This difficult phase, marked by inconsistent performances and disappointing results, coincided with the start of the European races, on circuits that Antonelli theoretically knew well from his previous experience in junior categories.
These struggles have been somewhat mitigated by a technical step back by Mercedes, which returned to the previous rear suspension specification to restore some of the lost feel for both Antonelli and his teammate George Russell. In Budapest, the last race before the summer break, Antonelli managed to return to the points, securing a tenth-place finish that finally moved him off the bottom of the standings after three consecutive Grands Prix without scoring.
Qualifying struggles and the Russell benchmark
According to Andrea Kimi Antonelli, the main challenge lies more in building confidence during qualifying sessions than in outright pace. In an interview with the German magazine Auto Motor und Sport, he explained: “When you push for a single lap, grip levels are extremely high. You enter corners much faster than in the race, and on every lap you think, ‘This corner is getting faster.’ I haven’t yet reached the point where I hit the absolute limit on the first lap. I’m still trying to understand where the limit is. The problem is that qualifying doesn’t give you many opportunities to work on it for long. Additionally, the limit constantly changes depending on conditions. But I’m working on it.”
At the same time, Antonelli faces the challenge of competing within the team against George Russell, a high-level reference point in Formula 1. “My goal has to be to match the times he sets. I believe it’s possible… George is having an extremely high-level season. He’s showing that he is among the very best. Especially when the car works well, he demonstrates exactly what he is capable of. It’s truly motivating to have a teammate like him. If by the end of the year I can reach his level, it would be an honor for me.”
On race pace, Antonelli added: “In the race, tyre management is easier for me because you don’t drive at the absolute limit, and you also have a clearer idea of how much the car can forgive you.”
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