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Martin Brundle says Kimi Antonelli is reminding him of Ayrton Senna as the young Mercedes driver’s dominance continues.
Antonelli was already the first driver to win his first four races consecutively and he has now extended that record to five. He is now 64 points clear at the top of the standings.
After beating four-time world champion Max Verstappen in an epic battle for pole position, Antonelli left the pack behind on Sunday. He was over 30 seconds ahead of Lewis Hamilton before the race was stopped and built his lead back up to 6.2 in the short run to the chequered flag.
Kimi Antonelli takes his FIFTH straight win at the Monaco Grand Prix? Where has this dominance come from?
Photo Credit: Scuderia Ferrari HP Press Office, Mercedes-Benz Group AG, Oracle Red Bull Racing / Red Bull Content Pool
Martin Brundle in awe of ‘generational talent’ Kimi Antonelli
Antonelli looks increasingly likely to smash the youngest champion record set by a 23-year-old Sebastian Vettel in 2010. He will only be 20 when the season ends.
Remarkably, the Italian has now matched Hamilton’s longest-ever winning streak in F1. Reflecting on his qualifying performance, Brundle compared it to another all-time great in Senna.
“He actually made fewer mistakes than anybody else in the front half of the grid, I would say,” he said. “Super impressive under a lot of pressure, leading the world championship. He makes me think of Senna, Kimi Antonelli does now.”
Does the chaos of the Monaco Grand Prix earn it a 10/10?
Photo by Joe Portlock/Getty Images
Similarly, Brundle praised Antonelli for ‘keeping his head’ during the race itself, which descended into chaos elsewhere after crashes for Lance Stroll and Charles Leclerc.
“That’s what’s impressed me as much as anything today with Antonelli, how under pressure, he’s kept his head,” he said. “Safety car restarts, two actual starts, and he’s as calm as they come.”
Finally, after the race had finished, Brundle added: “You are looking at a generational talent in F1.”
Brundle already likened Antonelli to Michael Schumacher at the opening round in Australia, when he made an impressive recovery from a crash in final practice.
Senna finished fourth in his second season as an F1 driver for Lotus, picking up two victories. Unlike the Brazilian at that stage, Antonelli is driving a dominant car, but he is maximising it in extraordinary fashion.
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