Young F1 sensation Kimi Antonelli crumbled under the pressure of racing in front of his home crowd for the first time, revealing the mental and emotional toll it took on him during the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix. Antonelli confessed to mismanaging his energy, leading to a subpar performance, but he views it as a valuable learning experience for future races.
The rising star was running in the top six and ahead of his teammate before an accelerator issue forced him to retire from the race. Despite benefiting from a well-timed Virtual Safety Car, technical difficulties hampered his performance, leaving him disappointed with the outcome.
“It was a very intense weekend, mentally and emotionally, and I feel like I didn’t handle things in the best way from my side,” Antonelli admitted. “I don’t think I did a good job conserving my energy, and I felt that it also affected my driving a bit. I didn’t have as much energy. It was definitely a good learning experience before the next race at home.”
Antonelli expressed his frustration, saying, “It wasn’t the happiest ending for sure. It was tough. I got stuck in the DRS train first, and obviously, the tires took a hit, so I was just trying to hang on, and then we were lucky with the VSC and then we switched back to the mediums.”
“Truth be told, I had high hopes, but after a few laps, I started having issues with the accelerator, and in the end, the engine completely failed. Of course, it’s a shame, but these things happen, and I think overall, the pace wasn’t too bad at the end of the day. But there was nothing more I could do, and still, it was a good learning experience this weekend, and I’ll see what I can improve as a driver to come back stronger in Monaco.”
