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Mercedes’ Andrea Kimi Antonelli expects Ferrari to be “very, very strong” at the 2026 F1 Hungarian Grand Prix, but he also expects McLaren to be in the duel this weekend.
The Hungaroring plays host to Formula 1 in round 11 of the season, in what is also F1’s final race behind the four-week summer break. Antonelli also arrives at the track on the outskirts of Budapest sitting atop the drivers’ standings, and he will leave in first no matter the result.
Antonelli boasts a 45-point lead over Ferrari ace Lewis Hamilton in second place in the table ahead of the Hungarian GP. Yet many in the paddock predict that it will be the Scuderia who actually set the pace this weekend, given the SF-26’s superb chassis and downforce levels.
Let us know your podium prediction for the 2026 Hungarian Grand Prix! 🇭🇺
Kimi Antonelli takes ‘pleasure’ from being the ‘underdog’ behind Ferrari in Hungary
Ferrari have revealed an aggressive rear wing upgrade in Hungary, too, as they strive to add even more downforce to suit the Hungaroring’s tight and twisty layout that does not reward top speed above all. Yet Antonelli welcomes the fact that people expect Ferrari to be strong.
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Paddock figures backing Ferrari to win the Hungarian GP even brings Antonelli “pleasure”, as it makes the Mercedes racer the “underdog” – just like he was in Monte Carlo. But Antonelli won the Monaco Grand Prix from pole, and he will now look to take another win in Hungary.
Antonelli claimed, via Gazzetta dello Sport: “I think Ferrari will be very, very strong here in Budapest. But McLaren should also do well, because they’ve brought a significant update.
“I’ll also be starting with an extra disadvantage, because I’ll be missing FP1. Vesti will be on track in my place. So, I’ll be behind [the other drivers] a bit.
“We’re not the favourites, but we weren’t in Monaco, either, and yet we ended up performing brilliantly. Maybe it even gives me more pleasure, because you start as the underdog and want to try to surprise – but without overdoing it, obviously.”
McLaren are set to test their own take on a Macarena rear wing during FP1 at the Hungarian GP on Friday, but the papaya crew do not intend to race with the update. Instead, McLaren’s focus with their upgrade package has been on adding downforce, including with a new floor.
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Still, Ferrari go into the Hungarian GP weekend as the favourites for victory, which Antonelli hopes Mercedes can prevent. Taking the victory on Sunday would even be the 19-year-old’s seventh win of the season so far, having already claimed six wins and six poles in 10 rounds.
With teammate George Russell scoring the other four pole positions and two wins, Antonelli believes Mercedes can bring their upgrades more strategically than Ferrari and McLaren are.
The Silver Arrows’ next updates are due at the first round after the summer break, in what is set to be the last Dutch Grand Prix for the foreseeable future on August 21-23 at Zandvoort. Mercedes also have what Antonelli calls a “major” update package coming later this season.
Antonelli added: “We’ll be bringing some updates to Zandvoort. But in the future we’ll have a major one – the most important one.
“The car is performing well, and when you’re this lucky, the team can take more time to develop and bring a major package, rather than bringing a few small changes every weekend that sometimes don’t even work or are harder to integrate.
“For now, though, we’re focusing on Budapest, to see where we stand on a track that favours our rivals.”
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