David Coulthard and Mark Webber explain what caused Kimi Antonelli’s crash at Monza

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Andrea Kimi Antonelli’s first taste of 2024 Formula 1 machinery was cut short when he crashed midway through the highspeed Parabolica corner at Monza.

The 18-year-old had only been on track for 10 minutes before suffering from a 52G impact, when he lost control and hit the barriers.

The crash caused significant damage to the Mercedes that would be handed back to George Russell, who had to move aside owing to the FP1 rules for rookies.

Russell made a ‘dig’ at Antonelli during the drivers’ press conference after the crash, as it set Mercedes back for the rest of the weekend as they tried to test new parts.

Discussing the crash on the Formula for Success podcast, former F1 drivers David Coulthard and Mark Webber both offered their theories as to why Antonelli ended up crashing.

Andrea Kimi Antonelli was slow on his reaction times

Mercedes was attempting to do a back-to-back test with its new floor when they sent Antonelli out for his FP1 run. The team had spare parts for the weekend but it caused a setback for the next session as repair work still went on.

Antonelli appeared to lose control midway through the fast right-hander of Parabolica, after doing successive timed laps on the soft tyres. Coulthard and Webber discussed the crash and offered a theory of where he made his mistake.

Coulthard: “To me, the Antonelli spin, I’ve got no issue somebody trying hard and making a mistake. When I joined Williams, you know what Frank Williams is like, he never was pissed off if you crashed the car trying. He was p—- off if it was a sloppy mistake.

“I actually think for Kimi, I think he just was a bit slow in his reaction because we’ve seen many people have mistakes at Parabolica. He just didn’t grab the scruff of the neck.”

Webber: “They [Mercedes] were trying to do a lot of analysis, weren’t they, between the cars. The brief was do the whole session and the mileage is so limited. I think you’re right, mate.”

Mercedes chiefs praise Antonelli despite crash

Despite crashing on his F1 weekend debut and hours before Mercedes confirmed him as a driver that will be alongside Russell for 2025, Antonelli still impressed those within the team.

Mercedes has generated a considerable amount of hype for the Italian, given his racing record prior to reaching F1 is decorated with wins across karting and junior formulas.

READ MORE: Who is Mercedes academy driver Andrea Kimi Antonelli? Everything to know

The reason Antonelli is highly rated by Mercedes is because they see him as the next Max Verstappen, with Wolff seemingly fine with taking a risk if it means a few setbacks early on for them.

Martin Brundle said Antonelli was the ‘luckiest driver ever’ after the Monza crash, due to how Mercedes chiefs reacted by pointing out his speed.