Mercedes junior Kimi Antonelli.
His second victory over the last two rounds, but first in the Formula 2 feature race format, Kimi Antonelli gave his chances of landing the Mercedes F1 2025 seat a major boost in Hungary.
With Mercedes searching for the successor for their seven-time World Champion Lewis Hamilton, team boss Toto Wolff has made no secret of their interest in promoting their Junior Team protégé Antonelli into the Mercedes line-up next season.
Kimi Antonelli secures first F2 feature race win
There has been growing speculation about the 17-year-old’s ability to drive for Mercedes due to his inconsistent performance in his rookie F2 season. However, he silenced his critics by executing a flawless alternate strategy in Hungary and securing his first feature race win, reaffirming his skill and potential.
Antonelli, who emerged triumphant in his debut F2 race at Silverstone, showcased remarkable skills in the wet weather conditions to dominate the sprint race.
Antonelli strategically capitalized on the Safety Car caused by Amaury Cordeel’s crash while being on the hard tyre. Seizing the opportunity, he promptly made a pit stop to switch to softs. Once the race resumed, Antonelli skillfully surpassed Dennis Hauger, Enzo Fittipaldi, Gabriel Bortoleto, and ultimately Victor Martins, securing a triumphant victory with an impressive lead of 12.5 seconds.
“After the achievement, Antonelli declared, quite understandably, that he was feeling great to be honest.”
“The race was fantastic, with a solid start that allowed me to make some impressive gains in positions. Right from the beginning, I noticed the incredible pace that was being set.”
“We were fortunate to have the Safety Car on our side, but our exceptional management skills allowed us to truly deserve the win. Our performance was outstanding today, with a strong pace.”
“In the beginning, I had some worries when all the drivers decided to pit during the first Safety Car period. However, as soon as the second Safety Car was deployed, I realized it was the perfect opportunity for me to shine since I had the upper hand with my tires.”
“I was aware that I needed to surpass others, particularly in the initial laps, as I had exceptional traction and the team shared the same advantage. I am genuinely delighted about that.”
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After a challenging start, Antonelli is optimistic about the positive changes and aims to maintain this momentum for the rest of the season.
“It was an incredibly emotional one,” he expressed, acknowledging our initial struggles this season. However, we are making a comeback.
Today, we truly demonstrated our capabilities, and I am immensely proud and delighted for the team. Each one of us deserves this success, and I hope we can maintain this positive momentum in the upcoming races.
Antonelli’s victory propelled him to sixth place in the 2024 F2 Drivers’ standings.
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