Gary Anderson, former race car designer and now pundit for The Race, had his own take on Mercedes’ decision to sign 18-year-old Italian Andrea Kimi Antonelli.
Gary Anderson: “For me it’s all about giving new drivers the chance to prove themselves, and I’ve worked with them in some of my most successful seasons in Formula 1. But our team was never in the front group, so the pressure was completely different and everyone felt it, including these drivers.
But Antonelli will have to take the place of Lewis Hamilton, and this is a very difficult task. However, he has worked with Mercedes more than once during tests, driving different cars of the team, and only the employees have the most complete information about how quickly he can adapt, what is the level of his professionalism and, most importantly, speed.
All I can say is that a friend of mine happened to be at the Silverstone Circuit Museum when Antonelli was testing at the British circuit, and he had a stopwatch with him. My friend was delighted with the lap times that this driver, who was only 17 at the time, was showing. His time matched the qualifying time of George Russell, who started the British Grand Prix from pole position.
Kimi won’t achieve this level of results straight away, but by partnering the very experienced Russell, who has beaten Hamilton on more than one occasion, Antonelli will have a good understanding of what the Mercedes car is really capable of. The old adage says that your partner is your main rival, the one who has to be beaten first. If Kimi succeeds, the rest will follow.
It has been a long time since the world championship was supplemented with three drivers who have completed the Formula 2 school: Oliver Berman is making his debut with Haas, Jack Douhan with Alpine and now Antonelli’s contract with Mercedes has been confirmed.
At the same time, we are still waiting for news about what Red Bull will do with Sergio Perez, and how this decision will affect Visa RB’s selection – maybe there will be another vacancy?
While I am sure that not everything will go perfectly in Antonelli’s career, Toto Wolff and Mercedes should at least be congratulated for taking a courageous decision.”
Source: F1 News
I am Christopher Clyde, an experienced journalist and content writer with a passion for sports. I have been writing about Formula 1 news for the past five years and am currently employed as an author at athletistic.com, one of the top sports websites in the US.
