A crash, a penalty… what next? For a man who's just turned 20, Italian hotshot Kimi Antonelli has already endured a tumultuous relationship with his home grand prix: the electrifying, old-school Monza circuit, long christened Formula 1's Temple of Speed.
Two years ago, on the same weekend that Toto Wolff announced that then-F2 driver Antonelli would have the small shoes of Lewis Hamilton to fill in 2025, Antonelli took part in his first F1 session. On his second flying lap, full-send around the final high-speed Parabolica corner, the teen dumped his car violently into the wall. Then, in 2025, Antonelli crashed again in practice before receiving a penalty for track limits and running Alex Albon off the circuit.
Coming in the midst of a helter-skelter rookie year, Wolff acknowledged that Antonelli's ninth-place performance had been "underwhelming," urging his protege to "just free up." Fast-forward 12 months, Antonelli is potentially 11 races away from becoming F1's youngest-ever world champion. And on Thursday, he acknowledged he feels "very free mentally."
Yet Antonelli's chances of becoming the first home driver to win the Italian Grand Prix since Ferrari's Ludovico Scarfiotti in 1966 are slim, bordering on zero. The championship leader, 59 points clear at the top, will take a 20-place grid penalty this weekend as he exceeds his engine allocation for the season. Mercedes's thinking is that, with Monza's mammoth long straight, overtaking from the back of the grid will be easier come raceday. Still, it feels a shame to lose the budding romance of a potential first Italian winner in 60 years.
"In some ways, it makes me a bit more relaxed going into the weekend," Antonelli said in the FIA press conference. "That's why I'm going to be able to enjoy more the driving and the weekend itself. Also, it's a different opportunity.
#wolff #grand #home
Two years ago, on the same weekend that Toto Wolff announced that then-F2 driver Antonelli would have the small shoes of Lewis Hamilton to fill in 2025, Antonelli took part in his first F1 session. On his second flying lap, full-send around the final high-speed Parabolica corner, the teen dumped his car violently into the wall. Then, in 2025, Antonelli crashed again in practice before receiving a penalty for track limits and running Alex Albon off the circuit.
Coming in the midst of a helter-skelter rookie year, Wolff acknowledged that Antonelli's ninth-place performance had been "underwhelming," urging his protege to "just free up." Fast-forward 12 months, Antonelli is potentially 11 races away from becoming F1's youngest-ever world champion. And on Thursday, he acknowledged he feels "very free mentally."
Yet Antonelli's chances of becoming the first home driver to win the Italian Grand Prix since Ferrari's Ludovico Scarfiotti in 1966 are slim, bordering on zero. The championship leader, 59 points clear at the top, will take a 20-place grid penalty this weekend as he exceeds his engine allocation for the season. Mercedes's thinking is that, with Monza's mammoth long straight, overtaking from the back of the grid will be easier come raceday. Still, it feels a shame to lose the budding romance of a potential first Italian winner in 60 years.
"In some ways, it makes me a bit more relaxed going into the weekend," Antonelli said in the FIA press conference. "That's why I'm going to be able to enjoy more the driving and the weekend itself. Also, it's a different opportunity.
#wolff #grand #home
8 days ago
