Formula 1 News: Antonelli could win title

(GMM) Giancarlo Fisichella believes Kimi Antonelli (pictured) can challenge for the Formula 1 world championship after the 19-year-old became the youngest polesitter in history in Shanghai on Saturday, breaking Sebastian Vettel’s long-standing record, and then winning the race on Sunday.

“Antonelli isn’t afraid – he can already win the world championship,” Fisichella, the former F1 driver and fellow Italian, told La Repubblica.

“He’s fast and learns quickly. He’d rather take risks than finish last. If he finishes ahead of Russell a couple of times, he could put pressure on him for the title.”

Editor’s Note: It also helps that he is driving the superior Mercedes that appears invincible

Antonelli was characteristically self-deprecating about a pole that came amid two turbulent weekends at the start of his second season on the grid.

“You can see that I like to complicate things for myself,” the Italian smiled, having grappled with a messy sprint and endured a chaotic Melbourne opener before his landmark Saturday.

Teammate and championship leader George Russell was hampered by technical problems in Q3, limiting him to a single run.

Arguably the more significant subplot of Saturday, however, was Ferrari’s narrowing of the gap to Mercedes. Lewis Hamilton qualified P3, with Fred Vasseur tracking a deficit that has shrunk from eight tenths in Melbourne to around four tenths by Saturday.

“We’re going in the right direction,” said Vasseur, “but they’re still a bit faster on the straights. We were able to fight for two laps in the sprint, and in the Grand Prix we’ll try to achieve even more.”

Hamilton, though, suspects Mercedes were not showing everything. “I was at Mercedes for a long time, and I know what goes on there,” he said.

“In qualifying they have a special mode they can activate – similar to the old party mode. This mode isn’t available to them in the race.

“Maybe they didn’t turn that mode on (in qualifying),” the Ferrari driver added, “so we’ll take it with a pinch of salt. I’m grateful that we are getting a little bit closer, but whether or not that’s real true pace, we’ll see obviously when we get to the next race in terms of qualifying.”

Toto Wolff played down the gap, calling Ferrari “three or four tenths behind” and predicting a tough battle. He was also pleased to see Hamilton rediscovering his enjoyment.

“Lewis and I exchanged messages last night,” Wolff said. “I’m pleased to see that he’s enjoying driving the new-generation cars.”

The Ferrari drivers are pushing each other hard too – Charles Leclerc was audibly frustrated on the radio during the sprint over Hamilton’s racing.

Vasseur welcomed it. “It’s easier to get faster when both drivers are pushing each other,” he said. “Internal competition brings more performance to the team.”

At Red Bull, the picture darkens by the day. Verstappen, far off the pace, said the situation feels worse than either of the past two difficult seasons. “Then, we’d turn the car upside down and something would come of it. Now nothing happens.

“I can’t push – every lap is just about survival. I’m not enjoying it at all.”

Team boss Laurent Mekies urges patience. “We probably have the most to learn about the power unit,” he said. “You must never forget that this is our first in-house engine.

“Where it’s being manufactured today was a field just a few years ago.”