F1 is more intense than expected, says Mercedes driver Antonelli

Antonelli, one of six new drivers lining up on the starting grid for the first time this year, only began driving single-seater cars in 2021. He skipped Formula 3, an F1 feeder series, and Mercedes accelerated his development through Formula 2 by giving him private tests in older cars last year.

His fourth-place finish in Melbourne made him the youngest F1 debutant to score points, but Antonelli’s first public outing in the sport was marred by a 190km/h crash in a practice session at last year’s Italian Grand Prix.

“Monza was a really terrible moment for me as a driver, but I think I learnt a lot from it,” Antonelli said, adding that crashing out in front of his home crowd had changed him both as a driver and as a person.

“I’m not going to lie, when I was in Free Practice 1 in Monza, I was pushing. I was free to push and I was like, no fear … on the limit, not caring about anything else,” he told reporters in China.

“I learnt after that … it’s better to take a step back and it’s better to push progressively and build the session because when such a mistake happens, you make a lot more steps back than you make forwards.”

Mercedes has paired the young Italian with the same race engineer that seven-times world champions Michael Schumacher and Lewis Hamilton worked with while driving for the team, Peter Bonnington.

“Having someone who has gone through all that already really helps you because I know he would be able to guide me in every situation,” Antonelli said.