Toto Wolff is bursting with pride for brand-new race winner Andrea Kimi Antonelli. Although the Austrian admits that the young driver had some luck with the timing of the safety car at Suzuka – the Italian was the only one of the two Mercedes drivers who could make a shortened pit stop – he saw how the now youngest-ever championship leader was ‘very fast’ at the right moment. Yet there is still room for improvement, Wolff jokes: ‘We should send Kimi to a driving school to teach him how to release the clutch’.
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Andrea Kimi Antonelli has won his second race in a row. The Italian driver is making history: at nineteen years old, he is the youngest leader of the world championship ever. Team principal Toto Wolff is therefore full of praise for his youngest pupil after the race. “It was a brilliant performance from him,” Wolff says about Kimi Antonelli at Viaplay. “Although you also have to have luck on your side.” The young Italian still had to make his pit stop when Oliver Bearman caused the first safety car period of the Japanese GP. However, teammate George Russell had just come in at that moment. The moment gave Kimi Antonelli the lead in the race, which he then did not relinquish.
“He was very fast when it really mattered. That is also what earned him the victory,” Wolff praises the young Grand Prix winner. “You could see how difficult it was to overtake. If we hadn’t had a safety car, it would have been difficult to win this race.” With the Japanese GP, Mercedes’ one-twos come to a temporary end. Although Kimi Antonelli crossed the finish line a good thirteen seconds ahead of the rest of the field, Russell got no further than fourth place. “Everyone is now learning how to deploy the energy and that is also why George got stuck at the end of the race,” Wolff also sees the competition closing in.
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‘We should send Kimi to a driving school’
Mercedes’ biggest weakness, the race starts, must therefore be addressed as soon as possible, according to the team principal. “Our starts have been a bit of a weakness so far. For both drivers, the starts were messy. We should send Kimi to a driving school to teach him how to release the clutch,” Wolff jokes. “He was a bit too quick with it, but it is difficult.” Kimi Antonelli only obtained his driver’s license last year, just before his Formula 1 debut.
Finally, Wolff also reflects on George Russell’s bad luck at Suzuka. “It started with the setup,” the Austrian team principal reveals. “He went the wrong way there and suffered in the race because of it. Everything worked against him in the race. For example, we brought him in just before the safety car and with that, his chance of victory was lost.” The Briton eventually finished more than fifteen seconds behind his teammate.
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Read everything about the Japanese GP here
