Kimi Antonelli did exactly what Mercedes ‘want’ despite Dutch Grand Prix crash with Charles Leclerc, claims Toto Wolff

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Toto Wolff admits Andrea Kimi Antonelli was “too optimistic” with his failed overtake on Charles Leclerc in the Dutch Grand Prix, but still took a big positive from the crash.

The Mercedes and Ferrari drivers tangled on Lap 53 of 72 last Sunday when Antonelli eyed a move on Leclerc at Hugenholtzbocht. But the Italian rookie took too much speed into Turn 3 and he understeered up the banking, before putting the Monegasque in a race-ending spin.

Antonelli tapped Leclerc’s left-rear wheel as they exited T3 in a fight for seventh place on the road, after both pitted for the second and final time on Laps 51 and 52. Ferrari called Leclerc in to cover the Mercedes gem, as they were fighting for fifth place before hitting the pit lane.

Leclerc did not want to pit on L52 of the Dutch GP, as the 27-year-old felt he had enough life in his hard C2 Pirelli tyres to make a one-stop strategy work, and the stop left him in danger. Antonelli finished the Dutch GP in P6, but his 10-second penalty took him out of the points.

Andrea Kimi Antonelli fulfilled Mercedes’ request to be aggressive in his crash with Charles Leclerc

Antonelli also merited a five-second penalty for speeding in the pit lane that, added with his penalty for crashing into Leclerc, meant the 19-year-old finished the Dutch GP in only P16. It is not his worst finish of the 2025 F1 season, though, after coming P18 in May’s Monaco GP.

READ MORE: Know all about 2025 Mercedes F1 driver Andrea Kimi Antonelli including stats

Yet Mercedes team principal Wolff still took a positive from Antonelli’s crash with Leclerc in the Dutch GP, despite admitting that his driver was “too optimistic”. Wolff has told Antonelli to be more aggressive on the track and he saw that with the Bologna boy’s ambitious lunge.

Wolff said, via SPEEDWEEK: “Unfortunately, he was a bit too optimistic in his manoeuvre against Charles, which cost both him and Ferrari dearly.

“Nevertheless, we want him to drive aggressively and take advantage of every opportunity on the track. That’s what he did today, and it’s a shame it didn’t work out.”

What penalty did Kimi Antonelli receive for crashing into Charles Leclerc in the Dutch GP?

Antonelli went to Ferrari’s hospitality to apologise to Leclerc for causing their crash after the Dutch GP, although the Monegasque had already left Zandvoort by that stage. So, Antonelli gave his apology to Ferrari team principal Fred Vasseur, who appreciated the teen’s apology.

The crash ruined what was a largely positive Dutch GP for Antonelli and Leclerc, though. The late safety car to recover Lando Norris’ stricken McLaren meant Antonelli plummeted down the order with his penalty, while Leclerc retired from a Grand Prix for the first time this year.

Mercedes also saw the FIA stewards slap Antonelli with two penalty points on top of his 10s penalty for causing a collision with Leclerc in the Dutch GP. Antonelli now has four points on his superlicence after also getting two for crashing into Red Bull’s Max Verstappen in Austria.