Antonelli shows himself distraught following poor Spa result

07:17, 27 Jul

Updated: 07:19, 27 Jul

byTobia Elia

Kimi Antonelli appeared distraught in front of the media after a second consecutive Q1 elimination at the end of qualifying in Spa.

It’s a delicate moment for Kimi Antonelli, who, in his rookie Formula 1 season, is facing what may be his first real moment of crisis.

The Italian driver, still without a confirmed seat for 2026, was once again eliminated in Q1 today after already delivering a disappointing performance yesterday.

Kimi had also spun during the sprint qualifying session and failed to shine in the sprint race as well, hindered by the DRS train that made overtaking extremely difficult.

Kimi Antonelli at Spa

Tough time for Antonelli

Arriving for interviews after his Q1 elimination, Antonelli appeared visibly disappointed in front of the media, including GPBlog, when answering questions about his weekend and current period.

''Since the European season I've been struggling to find confidence with the car and I felt like I've done a backward step,'' he stated.

''it's a difficult moment for me because I feel like I have no confidence on pushing. Yesterday I tried to push a bit too much and then I spun. And then it kind of hurts the confidence even more.''

He then added: ''it's a difficult period, I think. We know the limitations we have, but with the way I'm driving driving I'm just increasing the problem and that gave me even less confidence with the car.''

''I think the car was in a better place for sure compared to yesterday, it's just on my side I still struggle to get up to speed quickly just because the confidence have been missing. I think there's a lot of work to do on my side and I try to find the light out of the tunnel as soon as possible.''

Unlike the sprint race, the Grand Prix is expected to take place in wet conditions according to forecasts, barring any sudden weather changes. This could help the Mercedes driver stage a comeback or attempt an alternate strategy, while his teammate will line up sixth on the grid.

Despite the pressure that’s mounted over the past few weeks, Antonelli said during Thursday’s media day that he remains calm about his situation, confident he’ll secure a contract extension for next year as well.