Ludo van Denderen is a motorsport journalist at GPblog, specializing in Formula 1 and international racing series.
Mercedes team boss Toto Wolff doesn't believe it was a mistake to put Andrea Kimi Antonelli in the first free practice session at the Italian Grand Prix, but he admits his team didn't fully assess the pressures he would experience. The Italian crashed shortly after the start of his first session during an official Formula 1 race weekend in Monza.
Antonelli started the session strongly and immediately completed some fast lap. But after ten minutes, he crashed at Parabolica. "I wouldn't say it was a mistake, but I think we weren't completely right in assessing the pressures that he could find himself under," Wolff stated in a conversation with Autosport.com.
"Why that is, is that we talked about it, and how to approach the session. He has been brilliant in testing. He has never put a single foot wrong in the many thousands of kilometres that he's done. But it's a different ball game if you're an Italian driver, you're 18 years old in Monza and it’s your first opportunity," Wolff now understands.
Antonelli learned a lot from his debut
Looking back with the benefit of hindsight, Mercedes might have opted to allow Antonelli to make his debut away from his home Italian fans. On the other hand, Wolff realises, the youngster has learnt a lot from his crash at the super-fast Monza circuit.
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This article has been created in collaboration with Ludo van Denderen
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