Newly crowned Formula 1 world champion Andrea Kimi Antonelli has continued his impressive form at the 2026 Brazilian Grand Prix, setting the fastest time in FP2 and establishing Mercedes as the early benchmark in race simulations at Interlagos. Just one week after securing his maiden world championship in Mexico, the Italian showed no signs of slowing down, finishing Friday ahead of Lando Norris and Max Verstappen while demonstrating particularly competitive pace over longer runs.
Andrea Kimi Antonelli arrived in São Paulo with the same determination that carried him to the world title, despite having every reason to celebrate his remarkable achievement. The Mercedes driver ended Friday at the top of the timesheets, showing impressive speed in both qualifying simulations and race preparation. His visit to Ayrton Senna’s family on Tuesday has also given the weekend additional significance, with victory at his childhood hero’s home circuit representing a particularly meaningful objective.
Kimi Antonelli fastest in Brazilian GP FP2 as Mercedes sets the pace
Andrea Kimi Antonelli delivered the fastest lap in the second free practice session at Interlagos, finishing 0.253 seconds ahead of Lando Norris and 0.259 seconds clear of Max Verstappen. The result underlined Mercedes’ competitiveness over a single lap, but the team’s performance during the race simulations offered further encouragement ahead of Sunday’s Brazilian Grand Prix.
The Italian completed a particularly long stint on Soft tyres, maintaining a pace that emerged as the strongest among the leading drivers even after accounting for differences in simulation length and tyre degradation. Those figures were especially encouraging given the significant tyre wear experienced at Interlagos, where maintaining a consistent rhythm over longer distances can make a considerable difference.
Nevertheless, the newly crowned world champion remained measured in his assessment of the session, acknowledging that Mercedes still has areas to improve before qualifying and the race.
“It wasn’t bad,” Andrea Kimi Antonelli commented. “I felt comfortable with the car over a single lap. There are still a few things to improve with the race pace, but overall the feeling is good and I’m looking forward to tomorrow.”
His cautious response reflected the approach he has maintained throughout his successful 2026 campaign, even when Mercedes has appeared to hold a competitive advantage.
Mercedes W17 shows strong performance in Interlagos race simulations
The Mercedes W17 was particularly effective in the second and third sectors of the Interlagos circuit, combining strong performance through the corners with competitive straight-line speed. This balance allowed Andrea Kimi Antonelli to build his advantage over the opposition, although the car continued to show some understeer-related difficulties.
Mercedes trackside engineering director Andrew Shovlin described Friday as one of the team’s strongest recent practice performances. He explained how the different strengths of Andrea Kimi Antonelli and George Russell during FP1 helped the engineers improve the car before the afternoon session.
“It was one of our best Fridays in recent times in terms of competitiveness,” Andrew Shovlin explained. “In FP1, Kimi was very comfortable over a single lap, while George was more competitive on the long runs. We were able to combine the best aspects of the two set-ups for FP2, achieving good pace in both conditions.”
Despite the encouraging results, Mercedes still has several technical details to address. Brake lock-ups remain an area requiring attention, along with the compromise between rear-end stability through high-speed corners and front-end precision in the slower sections of the circuit.
These factors will be particularly important as Mercedes works to preserve its advantage over McLaren and Red Bull. The Friday simulations suggest that the W17 is competitive across different driving conditions, but the team has not yet achieved a completely satisfactory balance.
Mercedes warns Brazilian GP temperatures could change the competitive order
Mercedes representative Bradley Lord also highlighted the team’s encouraging start to the weekend while warning that the conditions expected on Saturday could significantly influence the competitive picture.
“We started well with the car straight away. Our race pace is competitive compared with Norris and Verstappen, but we expect a very close battle. On a circuit with such short lap times, even a single degree of track temperature can make a difference.”
The warning reflects the particularly small gaps between the leading drivers in FP2. Although Andrea Kimi Antonelli enjoyed a margin of more than two tenths over his nearest rivals, the performance differences remain sufficiently narrow for changes in track temperature and car balance to influence the order.
Mercedes therefore enters the next phase of the Brazilian Grand Prix weekend in a strong position, but without assuming that its Friday advantage will automatically translate into pole position or victory.
The significance of the team’s race pace is also evident when comparing the leading contenders with Ferrari, whose Brazilian GP FP2 telemetry and long-run performance highlighted the challenge of matching Mercedes over a sustained stint.
Kimi Antonelli targets pole position after winning 2026 F1 world championship
Perhaps the most significant aspect of Andrea Kimi Antonelli’s Friday performance was his attitude following the emotional events of the previous weekend. Winning the Formula 1 Drivers’ Championship at such a young age could understandably have resulted in a temporary reduction in intensity, but the Mercedes driver appears to have already put the celebrations behind him.
Bradley Lord explained that Mercedes still has an important objective to complete before the season ends, with both drivers determined to secure the Constructors’ Championship for the entire organisation.
“We still have a Constructors’ Championship to win,” Lord reminded reporters. “Both Kimi and George are determined to finish the job, also to recognise the efforts of everyone at Brackley and Brixworth. For Kimi, this is also already the start of 2027. He wants to finish the season positively and carry that momentum through the winter.”
The team’s focus on the constructors’ crown comes after Andrea Kimi Antonelli’s emotional world championship triumph in Mexico. Mercedes now has an opportunity to complete another important achievement, although the battle for victory at Interlagos remains closely contested.
For his part, Antonelli has made no secret of his ambitions for the remainder of the Brazilian Grand Prix weekend, while acknowledging the threat posed by McLaren and Red Bull.
“I think we have a good chance of fighting for pole, even though we’re all very close. McLaren and Red Bull are strong, so we’ll have to prepare as well as possible. We’ll also see what happens with the weather.”
Ayrton Senna tribute adds special motivation for Kimi Antonelli at Interlagos
Interlagos holds particular significance for Andrea Kimi Antonelli because of his admiration for Ayrton Senna. The Mercedes driver visited the Brazilian legend’s family earlier in the week, adding an emotional dimension to a Grand Prix that already represents an opportunity to continue his outstanding 2026 season.
The Italian also has positive memories of competing at the circuit. During last year’s sprint weekend, he secured two second-place finishes, and he now returns as Formula 1 world champion hoping to achieve something even greater.
“It’s a place I love. It would be fantastic to leave this weekend with another great result. I’ll do everything I can to put myself in a position to achieve it.”
Having already fulfilled his ambition of becoming Formula 1 world champion, Andrea Kimi Antonelli has found another source of motivation. With Mercedes showing impressive performance on both qualifying and race pace, the Italian has given himself a promising starting point for the remainder of the Brazilian Grand Prix weekend.
More Mercedes and Formula 1 news
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- Brazilian GP race simulations: Mercedes’ advantage over Ferrari at Interlagos
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