Andrea Kimi Antonelli prepared for his victory at the 2026 Formula 1 United States Grand Prix in an unusual way: by opening his laptop during dinner at an Austin restaurant to study videos of Max Verstappen’s previous race starts. Having secured pole position, the Mercedes driver spent part of Saturday evening analysing how his Red Bull rival had approached the opening corner at the Circuit of the Americas, hoping to avoid losing the lead in the first few metres of Sunday’s race.
His preparations came against the backdrop of a potentially difficult tyre disadvantage. Mercedes had chosen to start on the medium compound, while Max Verstappen, lining up alongside the championship leader, would use the softer tyres. Despite that difference, Andrea Kimi Antonelli successfully retained first place when the lights went out, while the Dutchman struggled for traction and came under immediate pressure from Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc.
Kimi Antonelli studied Max Verstappen’s Austin starts during dinner
The behind-the-scenes story was revealed by La Gazzetta dello Sport. On Saturday evening, while having dinner at a restaurant in Austin, the 20-year-old Italian opened his laptop and suggested reviewing footage of Max Verstappen’s starts in previous editions of the United States Grand Prix.
“Let’s see how Max has started here in recent years,” Andrea Kimi Antonelli said. He watched the footage several times, paying particular attention to how the Red Bull driver approached the first corner of the Texas circuit.
The concern was understandable. The four-time Formula 1 world champion was starting second, directly alongside Andrea Kimi Antonelli’s Mercedes, and arrived in Austin following consecutive victories in Malaysia and Singapore. The opening hairpin at the Circuit of the Americas, with its steep uphill braking zone and considerable track width, offers drivers several opportunities to gain positions immediately after the start.
The Italian was determined not to be caught out by Max Verstappen, particularly because the different tyre choices could give Red Bull an advantage when the lights went out. Mercedes had opted for the medium compound, while the Dutchman was equipped with the soft tyres, which offered the potential for stronger initial traction.
However, events unfolded differently from the scenario Andrea Kimi Antonelli had been preparing for. When the race began, the Mercedes driver made a strong getaway and maintained the lead, while Max Verstappen lost ground and came under attack from Charles Leclerc. The opening moments of the race saw Charles Leclerc challenge Max Verstappen as Andrea Kimi Antonelli retained first place, removing the immediate threat that the pole-sitter had spent the previous evening studying.
Why Kimi Antonelli’s Austin GP start was crucial for Mercedes
Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff explained just how delicate the situation had been before the race. According to the Austrian, starting on the medium tyres represented a disadvantage of approximately one metre compared with the soft compound. Max Verstappen, however, suffered considerable wheelspin at the start, losing the advantage that the softer tyres might otherwise have provided.
Andrea Kimi Antonelli’s successful getaway was also the result of development work Mercedes had been carrying out since the beginning of the 2026 Formula 1 season. The German team had struggled with race starts earlier in the championship, but improvements over the following months had made its cars significantly more competitive when the lights went out.
Speaking during the official post-race press conference after his victory, Andrea Kimi Antonelli acknowledged how much progress Mercedes had made in this area.
“Starts are definitely an area where we have improved enormously. At the beginning of the season we were really behind, but now we are competitive. It’s one less thing to worry about.”
That progress proved particularly valuable in Austin, where the championship leader converted pole position into his ninth victory of the season. The win also strengthened his position in the drivers’ standings, with Andrea Kimi Antonelli moving closer to the 2026 Formula 1 world championship following his dominant performance.
Max Verstappen’s difficult getaway changed the first-corner battle
There was, however, an important difference between the scenario Andrea Kimi Antonelli had carefully studied at the restaurant and what actually happened on Sunday. His video analysis had focused primarily on defending against Max Verstappen’s aggressive approach to Turn 1, but the Mercedes driver ultimately had no need to put those preparations into practice.
Despite starting on the softer compound, Max Verstappen struggled to launch his Red Bull effectively and immediately found himself defending against Charles Leclerc. Andrea Kimi Antonelli, meanwhile, retained first place without having to engage in the detailed first-corner battle he had anticipated.
The opening sequence also created an opportunity for Ferrari, with Charles Leclerc attacking the Red Bull driver as the field negotiated the first corners. Although Max Verstappen subsequently recovered ground, the initial phase of the race allowed Andrea Kimi Antonelli to establish himself at the front. The difficult start was another frustration for the Dutchman during a weekend in which Red Bull’s engine-related difficulties also featured in his post-race assessment.
Mercedes’ technical progress mattered more than Antonelli’s video analysis
The restaurant video session should not, therefore, be regarded as the technical explanation for Andrea Kimi Antonelli’s successful start. Reviewing Max Verstappen’s previous performances helped the Italian prepare for a possible first-corner confrontation, but the outcome was also influenced by Mercedes’ development work throughout the season and the Red Bull driver’s wheelspin when the lights went out.
Andrea Kimi Antonelli himself confirmed the significance of that progress, acknowledging that race starts had been one of Mercedes’ weaknesses at the beginning of the championship but had since become considerably more competitive. His comments underlined how much the team had improved an area that could previously have compromised its qualifying advantage.
The Austin victory was another example of how the Mercedes driver has combined careful preparation with the team’s increasing competitiveness. His race execution also benefited from the work of his engineer, with Andrea Kimi Antonelli explaining Peter Bonnington’s contribution to the United States Grand Prix success.
For Andrea Kimi Antonelli, the hours spent studying Max Verstappen’s previous starts ultimately proved unnecessary in the precise circumstances he had anticipated. Nevertheless, the episode highlighted the level of preparation behind his Austin performance, while Mercedes’ improved launch performance ensured that the Italian could maintain the lead and take another important step towards the world championship.
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