Mercedes’ Driver Improvement Advisor Gwen Lagrue has revealed the attribute with which Andrea Kimi Antonelli persuaded the Brackley-based outfit about his expertise.
Mercedes introduced on the eve of final 12 months’s Italian Grand Prix that their F2 driver Andrea Kimi Antonelli would exchange Lewis Hamilton, who had confirmed his departure from the group again in February.
The Bologna-born driver, who competed in Components 2 final season, has accomplished a number of check outings with Mercedes because the Brackley-based outfit introduced his promotion. He first carried out operating with the 2021 F1 Mercedes on the Pink Bull Ring earlier than racking up mileage with the 2022 F1 Mercedes in Imola and in Silverstone.
Antonelli then went on to realize expertise at Spa in August earlier than finishing his first operating on a race weekend. The 18-year-old took over George Russell’s automobile within the opening apply session on the Italian Grand Prix, however a mistake on his second flying lap noticed him crash into the obstacles on the Parabolica nook.
He then travelled to Mexico, the place he drove Lewis Hamilton’s automobile in FP1 on the Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez, the place he admittedly took a calmer strategy to keep away from any mistake.
The Mercedes junior has lately accomplished one other check run, this time at Jerez, racking up laps within the 2021 F1 Mercedes originally of January in good climate circumstances.
Reflecting on the preliminary part of their collaboration, Gwen Lagrue, who has been accountable for Mercedes’ younger drivers’ programme, insists he rapidly realized that Antonelli was totally different to the opposite gifted children.
“With Kimi I observed fairly rapidly he was already a bit totally different than different children in karting. However again then my thought was: ‘Okay, he is the most effective one I can have in go-karts’, not even excited about Components 1.”
“After which, to me, Components Regional has developed fairly nicely lately by way of driver preparation and we have now seen through the years that every one the children coming from it – or earlier than when it was known as Components Renault Eurocup – to F3 or F2; they had been performing, they usually had been more often than not those profitable.”
Lagrue has revealed that the adaptability with which Antonelli was in a position to get used to each new state of affairs has been the important thing issue Mercedes felt the Italian was a “particular” expertise.
“Then after we did the primary check in single-seaters, the way in which he tailored himself so rapidly to just about each state of affairs you began seeing that you’ve got somebody very particular. After all, he was confirming what we had been considering collection after collection, let’s say.”
“So by doing that, we had been ensuring that first he’ll be taught the brand new F2 with the concept of ultimately doing one other 12 months of F2 if it was difficult, or relying on the state of affairs in F1, guarantee that at the very least we’ll speed up his preparation to Components 1.”
