Kimi Antonelli reflects on a disappointing Dutch GP. His race was marked by an incident with Charles Leclerc; as the Monegasque emerged from the pit lane on fresh red tires, Antonelli attempted to overtake him at the Hugenholtz corner. A painful collision later, Leclerc had to prematurely end his race. Former driver Jacques Villeneuve dissected Antonelli’s action and questioned whether Formula 1 came too early for the 19-year-old rookie.
In an analysis for Sky Sports, Villeneuve looked back on the Dutch GP at Zandvoort and in particular on Antonelli’s overtaking attempt. The Canadian – as usual – did not mince his words. “That was very bad,” he judged sharply. “You would expect such an overtaking action from a driver in Formula 3, from someone without experience. The whole maneuver was totally uncalculated and not as it should be. If you’re in the premier class, you only make mistakes when you’re pushing the limit. That was not the case now.”
‘He became completely upset’
Villeneuve saw how Antonelli completely lost his way after the incident. “Then he became completely upset and also received a penalty for exceeding the speed limit in the pit lane.” The 1997 world champion drew a harsh conclusion: “Maybe Formula 1 is just too much for him.” Antonelli made his debut this year in Melbourne as one of the youngest drivers ever. Although he has already made several rookie mistakes, he did stand on the podium during the Canadian GP.
Fellow analysts suggested that Antonelli’s mistakes could be attributed to his age. Villeneuve disagreed, pointing to other young success stories. “No, that has nothing to do with it,” he responded vehemently. “He’s in Formula 1. How old was Max Verstappen when he started? How old was Lewis Hamilton? So that’s no excuse. Look at how far behind he was in that corner. On what planet could that overtaking maneuver have succeeded? Everyone knows you can’t take that line on this circuit. That was just very poorly calculated, and in Formula 1, you should expect better.”
