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Kimi Antonelli has opened up on the challenges he has faced in keeping his head cool during heated moments, including an instance in which he saw “red” after a Mercedes issue left him “exposed” during the Miami Grand Prix Sprint race.
Amid his record-setting start to the 2026 F1 campaign, Kimi Antonelli was suffering from an obvious issue when it came to the start of Grands Prix. After doing all the hard work during qualifying, his starts when the lights went out would often let him down.
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Despite revealing that he had practised his starts “at least” 100 times in the build-up to the Miami Grand Prix weekend, the issue was prevalent once again, and he ended up losing a handful of points as he bogged down at the start of the Sprint race.
The young Italian has seemingly got the issue under control now as we look towards this weekend’s Belgian Grand Prix, but that hasn’t stopped him from revealing just how furious he was with himself and Mercedes at the fundamental problem.
- READ MORE: Kimi Antonelli fastest in Belgian Grand Prix FP2 after second red flag for Pierre Gasly crash
Kimi Antonelli reveals he saw ‘red’ after problematic starts affected his Miami GP Sprint race
In an interview with La Gazzetta dello Sport ahead of the race weekend at Spa-Francorchamps, Antonelli was asked about his meeting with tennis legend Roger Federer at Wimbledon, which ended up going viral on social media.
In particular, Antonelli was asked whether the 20-time Grand Slam winner gave him any advice during the meeting, to which he replied, “He told me what he did when he played tennis: he thought one point at a time. In my case, one match at a time.
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“That way you can focus on the present without getting too emotional, which can be dangerous.”
He was then asked if he had found himself in certain situations this season in which he has been unable to control his emotions. “Yes, more than once,” Antonelli replied, candidly.
“For example, in Miami, I had a problem at the start of the Sprint and lost a lot of positions,” he continued. “I was furious, and from then on, I started driving with a blocked vein, like a bull who only sees red.
“That’s not good, because it exposes you to unnecessary mistakes.”
Antonelli managed to bounce back from his fury on Saturday to claim victory in Sunday’s Miami Grand Prix, a third consecutive victory in the longer-format race after having only taken his first-ever win in F1 just weeks prior at Suzuka.
- READ MORE: Mercedes can see ‘nothing in the data’ to back up George Russell’s excuse for Kimi Antonelli deficit
Kimi Antonelli also highlighted last year’s Belgian Grand Prix as coming during the ‘darkest period’ of his rookie F1 season
The shift from struggling rookie to F1 record-breaker with Antonelli surprised everybody inside the F1 paddock this year, and Antonelli also went on to open up about his struggles last year during his interview with the Italian outfit.
The European leg of the season, in particular, was difficult for him: “I was in the midst of the darkest period of my debut season.
“The European races were going poorly, I wasn’t feeling good with the car, and I didn’t understand why, and I was a bit overwhelmed by emotions: I cried.
“But it was crucial for me to face and overcome that moment, because today I am who I am also thanks to the maturity I gained last year.”
It’s been an incredible turnaround for Antonelli, who is currently on course to win a maiden title in F1 as he leads the standings by 25 points with nine rounds of racing in the books.
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