Kimi Antonelli got his first crack at an F1 Grand Prix weekend when he drove George Russell’s car at the Italian GP FP1 session in Monza earlier this month. Being one of the most talented drivers on the grid, not many doubted his abilities, but Russell still had one small piece of advice for him, which Antonelli failed to follow.
Sky Sports put up a ‘Behind the Scenes’ video for the Monza weekend on its YouTube channel. There, Russell was heard saying, “When I had driven in FP1 myself as a junior driver, the team manager would say, don’t crash.”
HUGE CRASH!
Heartbreak for Kimi Antonelli as he loses control in Turn 11 and smashes into the barrier pic.twitter.com/BKChBaRqTU
— Sky Sports F1 (@SkySportsF1) August 30, 2024
Unfortunately, after just one lap of running in FP1, Antonelli crashed. The Italian driver, who put up the fastest lap of the session, decided to push extra hard in his second and hit the barriers. In doing so, he accidentally ended up doing the one thing Russell stated that a youngster shouldn’t do.
However, Antonelli did not face too much criticism. Mercedes and Ferrari Team Principals Toto Wolff and Fred Vasseur both insisted that the 18-year-old was under immense pressure to deliver in front of his home fans, especially on a weekend when his move to the Silver Arrows was going to be announced.
Wolff also stated that he would rather have the problem of trying to ‘slow Antonelli down’ than having him be slow in general. The crash did not impact Antonelli’s future in any way. Just one day later, Mercedes announced that he would become a driver for the Brackley-based outfit and will team up with George Russell.
Wolff understands the hype around Antonelli, but also understands he is just 18, and will take some time to adapt to F1. On the F1: Chequered Flag podcast shortly after his announcement, the Austrian said,
“Probably we will see some very good races and highlights in the first season. On the other side, we will also see some front wings that will be missing after turn 1.”
