Mercedes Evaluates Kimi Antonelli’s Performance Ahead of Emilia Romagna GP
Mercedes has praised their new driver, Kimi Antonelli, for his ability to analyze data effectively overnight, making quick adjustments aimed at enhancing his performance for the following day.
Antonelli might find himself putting in some extra hours as the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix approaches on Saturday.
In his first practice session, the rookie driver placed 13th, concentrating on the soft C6 tire compounds making their debut at Imola this week. During the second practice, he experimented with a combination of C5 medium and C6 soft tires but ended up in 18th place.
“I had some trouble getting everything right on a single lap today. I made a few mistakes, and the low grip conditions made it challenging to optimize the C6 compounds. But overall, I felt solid during the longer stint,” Antonelli reflected.
Despite the challenges, Antonelli took a moment to appreciate his first Formula 1 home race. As he mentioned earlier, the 18-year-old driver invited his classmates to the track and felt the warmth and support from his home crowd throughout the week.
“This race is really special to me. It was fantastic to see all the fans along the grandstands and the track during my first lap in FP1. The energy from that is incredible. I want to thank everyone who cheered for the team today, and I’m looking forward to seeing that support continue through the weekend,” he said.
Mercedes Truckside Engineering Director Andrew Shovlin found a silver lining in Antonelli’s longer stints and his knack for carrying out necessary overnight adjustments.
“You’re good at analyzing data quickly this season, and I believe tomorrow will yield even better results. His long run was softer than what I used last year, and the C6 compounds might be tricky, but Sunday is a long run,” Shovlin noted.
Meanwhile, it was a smoother day for George Russell, who finished fourth in both practice sessions. He also focused on the C6 soft compound, mixing it with medium tires during FP2.
“The competition was very tight in both sessions. Some unexpected teams performed quite well. As expected, McLaren set a strong benchmark today,” Russell observed. “They might be the favorites for tomorrow’s qualifying, and we aim to position ourselves between them.”
“We’ll keep working hard tonight to pinpoint areas for improvement. If we can do that, we might close the gap to the leaders and have an exciting Saturday,” he added.
The team also introduced their first set of “critical” aerodynamic upgrades at Imola, with Shovlin stating that these new components are performing as anticipated, offering a positive outlook for the team.
“This weekend, we rolled out our initial significant aero update, and the results are as expected. It’s encouraging and lays a solid foundation for the rest of the weekend. This was also my first experience with the C6 Pirelli compound this season, which led to a somewhat unusual program,” Shovlin explained.
Mercedes engineers pointed out how competitive the current field is this season.
“Like most teams, I used two sets of soft compounds during FP1, focusing on single-lap performance. George’s pace matched past performances for Fridays,” said Shovlin. “It’s a tough grid. We’ll need to put in the overnight work to see what kind of pace we can bring to the last practice session. When you’re as competitive as we were today, every little detail counts,” he added.
Antonelli and the rest of the team are scheduled to return for the third and final practice session on Saturday, just ahead of the qualifying round for the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix.
