Kimi Antonelli predicts closer battles on F1 2026 grid

Mercedes driver Kimi Antonelli has predicted that the anticipated field spread in the F1 2026 season will not be as large as people expect.

The previous ruleset saw teams converge in pace as they matured, with the consensus being that the gaps between the fastest and slowest packages will spread out once again.

Kimi Antonelli predicts tighter field spread as F1 2026 begins

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The teenager has been in action with Mercedes at this week’s Barcelona shakedown test, where 10 of the 11 teams are due to take to the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya for their early running.

While outright performance is not the aim at this stage of pre-season, it offers the teams three days’ worth of running out of a five-day window to be able to gather as much data as possible on their new machines.

The Mercedes W17 has proven reliable early on, with unofficial counts of more than 150 laps having taken place on Monday, along with early reports of the team getting into three figures once again on Wednesday.

With nine teams having had a chance to get on track, and Aston Martin anticipated to join on Thursday, Antonelli’s early prediction is that the potential field spread may not be as wide as many anticipate.

“The car feels nice, we still have a lot of running and learning to do, but it was good to see it out on track,” the Italian told Mercedes’ official website.

“All the cars look really nice and they are quick. I don’t think the gaps on the grid will be as big as people think, we will have some close fights.

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“It will take time for everyone to understand, particularly with the battery management, but once we start racing it will all get very exciting.”

Now heading into his sophomore season in Formula 1, Antonelli recently had the honour of carrying the Olympic Torch as Italy prepares to host the Winter Olympics in the coming weeks.

In preparing for the new year, the teenager can now lean on a season of Formula 1 experience to guide his preparations – which he is looking to do in order to manage his time well.

“I used the break to reflect on the season just gone,” Antonelli added.

“I did a few sessions with my psychologist, we looked back and understood what went well and what went wrong in 2025, and that helped to set some goals for this year.

“The Kimi of 2026 is more prepared.

“Looking at the calendar, we will try and maximise the days at home to recharge and avoid extra travelling.

“We want to make sure I am always at 100% energy to maximise my performance in the car.

“A lot of that will come from the cardio side, we are happy with the strength, but now we want to start working on the cardio, it will really help in those hotter races.”

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