The Miami Grand Prix saw Mercedes rookie Andrea Kimi Antonelli reach yet another milestone in his burgeoning Formula 1 career.
Saturday’s Miami Grand Prix Sprint Race witnessed Lando Norris win from Oscar Piastri and Lewis Hamilton, but it was Kimi Antonelli who started from pole position.
Considering the pace advantage McLaren have over Mercedes and the rest of the field, and Antonelli’s lack of experience compared to Max Verstappen and teammate George Russell, it was a remarkable feat.
Unfortunately, Antonelli overcooked it going into turn one and lost several positions, and was fighting to avoid falling further back in the pack through the opening laps.
| RANK | DRIVER | TEAM | POINTS |
| 1 | Oscar Piastri | McLaren | 25 |
| 2 | Lando Norris | McLaren | 18 |
| 3 | George Russell | Mercedes | 15 |
| 4 | Max Verstappen | Red Bull | 12 |
| 5 | Alex Albon | Williams | 10 |
| 6 | Kimi Antonelli | Mercedes | 8 |
| 7 | Charles Leclerc | Ferrari | 6 |
| 8 | Lewis Hamilton | Ferrari | 4 |
| 9 | Carlos Sainz | Williams | 2 |
| 10 | Yuki Tsunoda | Red Bull | 1 |
His race was ruined when the rain started and he was unable to change his tyres after a collision with Verstappen in the pit lane, however, the penalties given out ahead of him meant he at least clinched two points.
Martin Brundle lauded Antonelli for his progress, and he outqualifed Russell for Sunday’s Grand Prix as well.
Another poorly-timed pit stop meant he had to settle for a P6 finish, and after the race, Ted Kravitz noted that Antonelli was suffering with an issue that race winner Piastri also dealt with during his rookie campaign.
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Ted Kravitz spotted Kimi Antonelli tyre management issues at the Miami Grand Prix
Kravitz was reflecting on the race for Ted’s Notebook (5/5 0:28 am) and when speaking about how Antonelli’s race went, he explained, “As for Kimi Antonelli, great start for him, took P2 as I said earlier, but really ragged the tyres a bit, got passed by Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris quite quickly.
“Pitted on lap 26, but he was held for Carlos Sainz, and lost a few seconds there in the pit stop.
“So, not a clean pit stop for either Mercedes and held off the Ferraris and finished 1.5 seconds ahead of the leading Ferrari of Charles Leclerc did Kimi Antonelli.
“That was what happened, and they stay a very decent and solid second in the constructors’ championship.”
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Antonelli’s earlier pit stop was partially tactical from Mercedes, but the fact he wasn’t able to come in under the second virtual safety car like Russell and the two McLarens was the biggest factor in him looking over his shoulder at the two Ferraris rather than up the road at Alex Albon.
At the 2023 Japanese Grand Prix, Piastri struggled with a similar problem and in an interview with Motorsport he said, ”These high-deg races are probably the biggest thing I need to try and work on at the moment. I think it’s still quite fresh for me, obviously.
“In all the junior racing before this, there are no races like this. So, the only way you can learn from it is by just doing the races.”
| Position | Drivers’ Championship | Points |
| 1 |
Oscar Piastri |
131 |
| 2 |
Lando Norris |
115 |
| 3 |
Max Verstappen |
99 |
| 4 |
George Russell |
93 |
| 5 |
Charles Leclerc |
53 |
| 6 |
Andrea Kimi Antonelli |
48 |
| 7 |
Lewis Hamilton |
41 |
| 8 |
Alexander Albon |
30 |
| 9 |
Esteban Ocon |
14 |
| 10 |
Lance Stroll |
14 |
Piastri’s team principal Andrea Stella agreed and explained, “I think when it comes to race pace, it’s not like you learn race pace, and it is a set of skills that then you deploy for every race.
“Race pace in a race like [Japan] with high degradation, the car bouncing a little bit in some places, with high speed, low-speed management, is applicable to today. But this doesn’t mean that it was the same in Hungary, or it was the same somewhere else.
“So, I think that’s why it’s a bit of a journey. And it takes time because every situation presents its own characteristics.
Pirelli have been trying to make the tyre compounds at each race softer to try and negate every Grand Prix becoming a one-stopper, but that failed once again in Miami.
Kravitz praised Antonelli at this year’s Japanese Grand Prix for getting his tyres to last longer than Hamilton’s as he went on to set the fastest lap of the race.
However, his performance in Miami highlights that he still needs to build up that level of consistency compared to his rivals.
