Antonelli vows British GP heartbreak will only 'fuel the fire' despite championship blow

With a 10-lap tyre offset to Leclerc in the closing stages, the 19-year-old looked a sure bet to secure the British GP win, but damage to his wheel shield forced two visits to the pits. Struggling to keep his car on track, the Italian then received a five-second penalty - one that saw him finish P16 after the race ended under the Safety Car following Max Verstappen's Lap 48 crash.

Immediately after the race, Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff suggested the Silver Arrows could look to appeal Antonelli's penalty, but has since walked back on that threat.

The result has proved to be a consequential dent in the teenager's championship lead, with the deficit to nearest rival and Mercedes teammate George Russell now reduced to just 25 points. Speaking to media, including GPblog, the young Italian first explained his issues during the race.

Antonelli said: "I lost, I don't know how much downforce, the car wouldn't turn anymore. In some of the corners, the wheel was in the air, so there was something fundamental that was broken."

During the race, the championship leader nonetheless showed remarkable determination not to give up any chance he had of the points, pleading with race engineer Peter 'Bono' Bonnington to stay out despite calls to retire the car.

"I just showed that I had the mindset, Antonelli said. "That every time I go on track, I do my best, that I try to give everything, and that even today, despite things that were already going against us, I saw there was the possibility to get one point, and I was just trying my best to achieve that. And I was going to achieve that, but then the safety car came, and yeah, just didn't really have the possibility to even try for that."

On the penalty, Antonelli added: "I mean, these are the rules, so I cannot do anything about it. But of course, I was trying my best to stay on track, but it was really undriveable. And of course, to get a penalty for that, it hurts."

Attention then turned to Antonelli's championship hopes. When it was put to Mercedes' teenage sensation that he was losing momentum in the championship, following a DNF in the Barcelona GP two rounds prior, Antonelli was insistent of the contrary, instead arguing the fire "grows even more" after encountering setbacks.