The Brazil Grand Prix ended with mixed emotions for Kimi Antonelli. The young Mercedes driver secured an excellent second place behind Lando Norris, but in the post-race cooldown room, he appeared visibly affected when reviewing the images of the contact that ended Charles Leclerc’s race and impacted his Ferrari, in which Antonelli and Oscar Piastri were involved.
Replay of the incident
During the cooldown, the replay of the collision with Piastri and Leclerc was shown on the screens, highlighting the moment when Leclerc’s Ferrari lost its front suspension after the impact with Antonelli’s Mercedes.
Antonelli’s reaction to the crash
The incident occurred on lap six, immediately after the Safety Car came in following Gabriel Bortoleto’s off-track excursion. On the restart, Oscar Piastri, Kimi Antonelli, and Charles Leclerc found themselves side by side battling for second place.
Oscar Piastri attempted an aggressive inside move, but a lock-up under braking triggered contact with Antonelli’s car. Antonelli was struck laterally and collided with Charles Leclerc, breaking the front suspension of the SF-25. Charles Leclerc was forced to retire immediately, while Oscar Piastri received a 10-second penalty.
When the replay appeared on the cooldown room monitor, Antonelli watched in silence alongside Max Verstappen and Oscar Piastri. After a few seconds, the young Italian shook his head and said a single phrase: “Poor guy,” referring to Charles Leclerc. The simple but sincere comment demonstrated Antonelli’s sportsmanship and empathy, acknowledging that the incident was not his fault, according to f1ingenerale.
A strong finish for Mercedes
Kimi Antonelli still managed to finish second behind Lando Norris and ahead of Max Verstappen, who completed a remarkable comeback from the pit lane. This was a key result for Mercedes, highlighting the growing performance of the young Italian driver.
For Ferrari, the Brazil GP was a disaster. Alongside Leclerc’s retirement, Lewis Hamilton was forced to retire after contact with Franco Colapinto, which heavily damaged the front of his SF-25. Maranello left Interlagos without scoring any points, in a weekend the team will want to put behind them as quickly as possible.
