Kimi Antonelli’s lead within the F1 championship has shrunk after he retired within the closing phases of the Barcelona-Catalunya Grand Prix.
With rival Lewis Hamilton taking his first win in Ferrari colours and Mercedes’ George Russell taking second place, the Italians’ grip within the drivers’ rankings dropped to 41 factors.
Antonelli overtook his Mercedes teammate after only one lap earlier than his automotive got here to a halt and received a fierce battle on the skin of Flip 3 to maneuver into second place.
Antonelli overtakes Russell at Barcelona
©XPB Pictures
“After all it hurts for me, however I wasn’t attempting to win the race at present anyway,” Antonelli mentioned.
“After all it helped Lewis in VSC and every little thing, but it surely additionally helped me in Suzuka, for instance.”
When requested in regards to the cause for his retirement, he added: “I believe it was the battery, one thing battery-related. I am not likely positive, however yeah, I did not know there was going to be a retirement as a result of I simply switched it off, however it’s what it’s.”
If his evaluation is appropriate, Russell and buyer group McLaren additionally suffered electrical failures all through the opening race, which must be a wake-up name for Mercedes.
Regardless of his apparent disappointment, Antonelli confirmed maturity past his years and was the primary to congratulate Hamilton on his 106th F1 success at Parc Fermé.
Antonelli congratulates Hamilton in Barcelona
©XPB Pictures
“As we speak, our greatest outcome was second place, so I used to be very glad for him, as a result of he is been chasing that win at Ferrari for a very long time. And, you recognize, to see him lastly obtain it, I used to be so glad for him. And it felt just like the worst to go and congratulate myself on that,” he defined.
Antonelli missed Friday’s FP1 and was struggling to get well from the absence of rookie driver Fred Besti. This was a sacrifice every driver needed to make twice all through the season.
“I felt actually good at present,” he mentioned. “I felt very robust and thought I might handle the tires. So it was disappointing to lose some factors, however yeah, this isn’t the time to be unhappy.
“After all it hurts now, however I believe it’s going to heal in just a few days and I can already deal with the subsequent match.”
