The refuge of Kimi Antonelli, F1 leader: “There is my father, who always comes, and my coach. It has allowed me to isolate myself from the noise”

When you see Kimi Antonelli in person and you hear him speak to the press, it is impossible not to be surprised. Despite being 19 years old when he started the season (now 20 years old), the Italian stands out for his calmness in front of the media, his smile, his complicity and closeness. He has the appearance of a child and awakens in many a feeling of empathy and tenderness, especially among Italians.

It’s hard to find a person in the paddock who doesn’t like you. Kimi. Very complicated. And even more complex is seeing that communion with all the drivers on the grid. A simple boy, who is still that: a child. But because of the way he speaks and faces his challenges, because of his temper and composure, when he lowers his visor, he seems to have a very different age.

An example of this is how Kimi knew how to overcome a difficult first year in the F1 with only 18 years and rise mentally, without sinking. How has he been able to take on the challenge of having the best car on the grid in only his second year in F1 to devastate his teammate and the rest. He withstood the pressure also in Monacowith a masterful pole against the best specialists, and without failing in two standing starts, one of them, against hamiltonwho was driving a Ferrari that was starting better at that time. And he also showed amazing calm on the days when he had to minimize losses, as in Bakuwhen he started from behind, without taking excessive risks.

But that temperance is even clearer in what was seen in Austin last weekend. He had his first title match ball in only his second year in F1, at the age of 20. Another could have been a flan, nervous about having the dream of his life to play, even though he had an enormous advantage in the World. Kimi No. He remained calm despite the questions he received on Thursday about the title.

As he told Bondyour track engineer (former Hamilton engineer in his golden era with Mercedes)had to focus on the same thing as the rest of the Grand Prix: he only had to think about winning. That would help him isolate himself from the rest.

It’s easy to say, but not so easy to do. And for this, Kimi Antonelli had the best of help: his environment. That is your greatest refuge. It was in Austin to know how to isolate himself from the noise, as the driver himself explained in the press conference after an F1 United States GP in which he achieved a great pole position and won. He also did it with a car that after Free Practice 3 seemed not enough to take pole position.

The engineers told him that it depended on his driving to get something more out of the car, because they had already done everything. And Toto Wolff, therefore, could not explain why Kimi then took that pole position. He assumed he would be 3rd or 4th, and he conquered it. And in the race, he nailed it alongside Bono and a Mercedes strategy wall that got the strategy completely right.

Kimi spoke about all this at the official FIA press conference after his victory.

“The pressure for the title? The truth is that I am very lucky because I have a very good group of people around me. My father is on the team, who always comes, and also my performance coach (the Catalan Sergi Àvila). I have a great group of people who help me be more relaxed and not worry about these kinds of things. They help me isolate myself from the noise and that has also allowed me to enjoy the weekend and perform well,” commented Kimi Antonelli.

“Obviously, there has been a lot of talk about the topic (of the title). I’m not going to lie: on Thursday there was a lot of talk about the championship and all that, but I tried not to worry at all and focus on getting the best possible result. Today was a very important result for me and for the team,” said the Bologna driver.

Before the title, correct your errors

That same environment was also his refuge and the key to his improvement in key moments of the course. “Without a doubt, this season is being a pleasant surprise. But when I look back, there will be things to work on and improve, both in my mentality in certain situations and in the way I face some scenarios. At the end of the season I will have more time to analyze everything: what has gone well and what could have been better. But, without a doubt, so far it has been a very consistent season and we will try to maintain that line until the end,” he commented on the matter.

He was referring to “the mistake in the third free practice in Australia, and in Japan, I executed the start poorly. Later, in Miami, I also gave away points in the sprint race for the track limits. Yes, the track limits have been the main problem for me.”he expressed, showing his happiness for only exceeding the track limits once in the Austin race: “Yes, just once!”

“Today was good. But, of course, I’m also talking about situations like this and some qualifying sessions where I didn’t approach things with the right mindset. So I have to make sure I improve in those aspects,” he said. He was two points away from his first F1 world crown, and if nothing strange happens, he should achieve it this weekend at the Mexican GP. But I was already thinking about continuing to improve.