Kimi Antonelli shrugs off George Russell title claim amid mind games talk

Kimi Antonelli is refusing to get drawn into mind games George Russell after his teammate insisted the championship is now the Italian’s to lose.

Antonelli is writing his own chapter in Formula 1’s history annals this season, the 19-year-old breaking records with every passing week.

Kimi Antonelli dismisses George Russell championship mind games

Want more PlanetF1.com coverage? Add us as a preferred source on Google to your favourites list for news you can trust

In Japan, he became the youngest driver to lead the world championship when, 19 years and 216 days old, he turned his four-point deficit to Russell into a nine-point lead.

Meanwhile, his third win on the trot, which came in Miami, saw him become the first driver in the sport’s history to convert his first three pole positions into Grand Prix wins. That run is now up to five.

The only negative in Antonelli’s season has been his race starts as he has lost positions off the line time and again. That streak ended in Monaco when he led off the line and into Turn 1 at the start, and then did so again in the standing restart after a red flag for Charles Leclerc’s crashed Ferrari.

It’s been an incredible period for Antonelli, who has overhauled Russell as the favourite for the world title. At least according to the Briton, who claims the title is Antonelli’s to “lose”.

But while that could be seen as a defeatist statement, or so says former F1 driver Christian Fittipaldi, it could also be the start of the mind games on Russell’s side of the garage.

Either way, Antonelli isn’t playing.

“It’s not the first time we’ve seen mind games,” he told Motorsport.com.

“People always try to shift the pressure onto their opponent, whether it’s an external rival or a teammate – it doesn’t make much difference. Fortunately, those things don’t really affect me.

“We’re still only in the first third of the season, and I think it’s definitely too early to start talking about a title showdown. I’m working race by race.

“Of course, at the end of each weekend I take a look at the standings, but immediately afterwards my focus is already on the next race. When I lower the visor and head out on track, I’m not thinking about the championship. I race to do the best job possible.

“And, as I’ve already said, since I haven’t won anything yet, I have nothing to lose.

Go deeper into the Monaco GP: Conclusions, Ratings, Winners & Losers

Monaco GP conclusions: Mini Max, no Russell sympathy, Hamilton mystery

Monaco Grand Prix driver ratings: Antonelli masterclass, Russell in turmoil

Antonelli flawless, Russell left shocked: Monaco Grand Prix winners and losers

Mercedes tried to rein Antonelli in during the Monaco Grand Prix

Antonelli celebrated his fifth Grand Prix win on the trot at the Monaco Grand Prix, where Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff joined him on the podium for the champagne celebrations.

The Austrian hailed his championship leader for his performance on the streets of Monte Carlo.

“What Kimi can do is special,” he told the Italian edition of Motorsport.com.

“He has full control of the car and his emotions. He doesn’t lose his cool if the person behind is only a second and a half behind, because he’s capable of changing pace and increasing the gap.

“It’s truly incredible.”

But, says Wolff, there were times that both he and Antonelli’s race engineer Peter Bonnington tried to rein the Italian in only to realise that blistering pace, that saw Antonelli lap every one of his rivals bar the Ferraris in second and third place, was his comfortable pace.

“Bono told him first, then I repeated it,” Wolff revealed.

“I added to Bono, ‘You have to tell him he’s half a minute ahead.’

“Peter repeated the message, but Kimi kept doing those times, so we thought maybe that was his pace.”

The win was Mercedes’ first in Monaco since Lewis Hamilton’s 2019 success.

“It’s true,” said Wolff, “it’s always been a bit of a challenge for us, we may have often come close, but the last time we won was in 2019. So, returning to victory was a great feeling.”

Antonelli leads the Drivers’ Championship by 66 points ahead of Hamilton, with Russell a further two points down in third place.

Want to be the first to know exclusive information from the F1 paddock? Join our broadcast channel on WhatsApp to get the scoop on the latest developments from our team of accredited journalists.

You can also subscribe to the PlanetF1 YouTube channel for exclusive features, hear from our paddock journalists with stories from the heart of Formula 1 and much more!

Read next: ‘No World Championship’ – Russell handed brutal Antonelli warning ahead of Barcelona GP