Antonelli vows to fight from P7 after yellow flag infringement
Photo: Race Pictures
Updated: 14:15, 26 Jul
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Kimi Antonelli is currently leading the World Drivers' Championship by 45 points. However, the Italian will be fighting from P7 after a yellow flag infringement.
When asked if the yellow flag caused by Max Verstappen’s spin affected his lap, Antonelli responded, “Oh yeah, for sure. The thing is, I had to coast all the way into the apex, and the lap before, last corner was terrible. I knew there was going to be quite a bit of time to be found there. But yeah, just obviously it was a shame, but these things happen.”
“But for sure, it would have been P3, but still not good enough for P1. I think we were going to be probably. 700s, 800s shy of pole, which is still surprising, especially after where we were at the end of Q2.”
Compared to other race weekends, Mercedes' pace has not been as strong. Neither Antonelli nor George Russell topped any of the free practice sessions.
Photo: Race Pictures
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About Ferrari and McLaren’s pace, Antonelli added, “We expected it, also because they all brought upgrades. Ferrari brought a new railway, McLaren brought a new floor, so A new rear wing, McLaren brought a new floor, so we haven't brought an upgrade for downforce in a long time. So we knew, but I think like we kind of lost a little bit ourselves in Q2”
He continued, “Especially, we were so out of the window with tyres, I feel, and that put us a little bit in the back foot. And you know, having to make such a huge step in Q3 is never ideal because obviously the car changed quite a bit and you know, this was not so easy to extract the maximum out of it.”
Antonelli believes in a win from P7
While Antonelli originally qualified fourth, he will start from seventh after receiving a three-place grid penalty for a yellow flag infringement.
Speaking during the drivers' parade, Antonelli spoke about the penalty: “Obviously it's a pity to have lost those three places, but it's what it is. And the most important thing is that we try to maximise today's race. But pace is good; it's very warm today, a bit gustier as well, so it's going to be interesting to see. The car really feels like it's come on this weekend.”
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“The race pace has been stronger than our single laps, so there's a lot to play for, and obviously degradation is gonna be big, so we'll try to do our best, but I'm really looking forward to it, and hopefully we can do a good race for the team, for myself and for the fans.”
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Overview
Friday 21.08.26
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Friday 21.08.26
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| Pos. | Driver | Team | Points |
|---|---|---|---|
1 | MercedesMER | 204 | |
2 | FerrariFER | 159 | |
3 | MercedesMER | 154 | |
4 | FerrariFER | 126 | |
5 | McLarenMCL | 103 | |
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