Kimi Antonelli faces sharp criticism from Toto Wolff
In the Italian Grand Prix, Mercedes' rookie driver Kimi Antonelli put up a valiant fight, qualifying just a few hundredths behind George Russell. However, the race did not go as smoothly as expected for the Frenchman.
Antonelli incurred a penalty during the race for a maneuver in the fight against the Williams driver, Russell. This setback put him back in the pack, and he was overtaken by Alex Albon in the second stint. Despite starting on fresh hard tires compared to the Frenchman's starting tires, Antonelli finished the race in eighth place.
Toto Wolff, team principal of Mercedes, expressed clear criticism of Antonelli's performance, calling the weekend disappointing. He noticed an excessive caution in overtaking situations, stating that Antonelli should not have lost a second to Pierre Gasly.
Wolff's observations echo the concerns about Antonelli's performance this season. The Frenchman has only earned 3 points from the last 6 races, a stark contrast to his teammate's impressive 58 points in the same period.
Wolff believes the cause of Antonelli's poor performances is carrying over traumas from previous mistakes into the next session or the next weekend. He suggests that improving Antonelli's performance can be achieved through conversation.
Mercedes had announced at the beginning of the year that they would forgive rookie Kimi Antonelli's mistakes and take the pressure off his shoulders. However, the search results do not provide any information about specific measures announced by Mercedes to help him out of a sporting slump.
Antonelli's performance in the Formula-1 season has been more than meager, with few positive aspects and finishing far behind his teammate George Russell. Despite this, he delivered decent to good results in overseas races at the start of the season and in Canada.
Antonelli took Charles Leclerc out of the race with a driving error at the previous Formula-1 weekend in Zandvoort. He hopes to return to his overseas form in Azerbaijan.
In Miami, Antonelli was the faster Mercedes driver, offering a glimmer of hope for the future. As the season progresses, it will be interesting to see if Antonelli can bounce back and deliver the performances that Mercedes and he himself are hoping for.
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