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Toto Wolff spoke after the Japanese Grand Prix and pointed to a problem Mercedes are facing that Kimi Antonelli had to overcome during the win.
Antonelli won the Japanese Grand Prix with a significant advantage, leading Oscar Piastri by almost 14 seconds before crossing the chequered flag.
Despite this, Antonelli admitted he was lucky against Piastri, who was in the lead and looked comfortable, before Oliver Bearman’s crash led to a safety car and a well-timed pitstop for Antonelli.
No Mercedes one-two in Japan!
Oscar Piastri takes second, with Charles Leclerc third
In doing so, Antonelli became the first teenager to win multiple Grands Prix, surpassing Max Verstappen’s record for the most wins as a teenager.
But Kimi Antonelli’s win in Japan is overshadowing an issue that Mercedes are facing, as he fell back to P6 despite Antonelli securing pole position in qualifying.
READ MORE: Kimi Antonelli asserts he’ll be ready for George Russell’s ‘mind games’ during Mercedes title fight
Toto Wolff claims Mercedes are struggling with race starts
Toto Wolff spoke after the Japanese Grand Prix with DAZN Spain about Mercedes’ success and Kimi Antonelli’s winning drive.
While Antonelli’s start was not strong, he drove very well. Wolff also lamented George Russell’s ill-timed pitstop, before admitting that the team need to improve on their starts, as they squander positions.
“That’s right, his driving was very good, no doubt. The start wasn’t great; we need to send him back to driving school so he learns how to release the clutch, but he was quick when it mattered.
“We had to pit George a little earlier to make sure Leclerc didn’t take the position, and that made the difference.
“But you have to make your own luck, and that’s what he did today… There are two factors: the starts are difficult for us, and also, everyone learns.”
READ MORE: Juan Pablo Montoya shares why George Russell has ‘more to lose’ in title fight than Kimi Antonelli
Who was your Driver of the Day from the Japanese Grand Prix?
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Kimi Antonelli acknowledges challenges with race starts
Kimi Antonelli also spoke to DAZN about his issue with the starts, and noted that he had done well in starts earlier in the weekend.
“Yes, I want to talk about the start because it’s an area that requires the most work. All weekend, I’ve been getting decent starts in free practice, and I don’t know what happened in the race, but I immediately noticed I’d done something wrong; the wheels spun, and I lost ground.
“Then I got stuck in the pack, but when I had clean air on the medium tyre, the pace was strong. And yes, I was lucky with the safety car because it made my life much easier. I found myself in first place, and we haven’t looked back since.”
Antonelli has managed to bounce back from poor starts in each of his races so far. But if this issue persists, he will eventually be punished for it.
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