System 1 deputy group principal Bradley Lord believes that Kimi Antonelli had three years’ price of studying in his rookie season.
The Italian driver joined the Brackley outfit in 2025, taking the seat left by seven-time champion . Thrown straight into the limelight of a prime group, Antonelli managed the stress of his new function, ending seventh within the drivers’ standings with 150 factors.
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He secured his maiden F1 podium end on the 2025 Canadian Grand Prix and celebrated two extra podiums in Brazil and Las Vegas.
“What’s been actually cool is definitely seeing Kimi’s perception in himself begin to match the belief that the group has put in him,” Lord mentioned through the .
“So, it is very easy while you’re exterior the automobile or observing to imagine each driver has excellent confidence in themselves always and that they’ve the assumption that they will do it. And truly seeing Kimi construct the assumption in himself, undergo the troublesome bit final season, which I feel price you a piece of confidence as effectively, however then watching you set what you wanted in place to rebuild that with Baku, and Vegas, and Brazil, and people actually robust performances on the finish of the season, that is been the great factor.
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Andrea Kimi Antonelli, Mercedes
Andrea Kimi Antonelli, Mercedes
“It felt to me such as you typically discuss in regards to the troublesome second album or the troublesome second season for a driver, and Kimi managed to have about three years’ price of studying in a single final yr, probably simply being in a front-running group as effectively, within the stress of a battle for P2 within the constructors, that isn’t typically one thing {that a} rookie driver has to cope with.
“After we now see the Kimi who’s come into 2026, had the reset of the winter, and it appears like you might have, to me anyway, multiple season’s expertise underneath your belt, and you probably did plenty of studying final yr at excessive pace.”
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Antonelli secured his maiden F1 grand prix win on the 2026 Chinese language Grand Prix and went on to take the lead of the drivers’ standings with a second win on the Japanese Grand Prix.
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