Andrea Kimi Antonelli currently leads the drivers’ championship as the youngest driver ever. However, former driver David Coulthard still doubts the young Italian’s title chances. ‘Of course, Kimi Antonelli can become world champion,’ says the Scot, but he immediately sees an obstacle for the Mercedes driver: ‘He will have to fight tooth and nail against George’.
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Mercedes drivers Andrea Kimi Antonelli and George Russell are so far the only two Grand Prix winners of the season. As a result, the two drivers also occupy the first two places in the drivers’ championship. Kimi Antonelli came out on top during the last two race weekends, in China and Japan, by winning two races in a row. Nevertheless, former driver David Coulthard doubts the title chances of the younger Mercedes driver.
For the Scot, Kimi Antonelli doesn’t quite feel like a serious contender for the title this year yet. “Mercedes has invested a lot of time in this season and has a long dry spell behind them. Let’s wait and see what happens in Miami, then we might get a better picture of how the pecking order develops further,” the former Red Bull driver tells ServusTV. “Of course, Kimi Antonelli can become world champion. If you have a winning car, George Russell is pretty much the only one who can keep up with him. He will have to fight tooth and nail.”
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‘No pressure on Kimi’
However the further title fight between Kimi Antonelli and Russell develops from the Miami GP, team boss Toto Wolff refuses to put pressure on the youngest Mercedes protégé. “As far as Kimi is concerned,” he said in a recent media session, “we have always been very clear about our objectives. In his first year, we expected good performances and highlights, but also moments when it would be very difficult. And that is exactly what we have seen.”
“Of course, everyone in Italy wants to talk about world championships and comparisons with Ayrton Senna come up,” Wolff continues. “But that’s something I don’t like to read. He is a 19-year-old who is particularly in the spotlight in Italy. It is therefore important to reduce expectations and pressure rather than increase them.”
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