David Coulthard: Why he compares Kimi Antonelli to Michael Schumacher

20-year-old Kimi Antonelli is racking up one top result after another – this is how exceptional talents make their way towards the World Championship title!

The Mercedes driver from Bologna now holds an 84-point lead over his closest rival in the World Championship, George Russell (who retired in Malaysia due to engine failure), and most insiders in the paddock are convinced that the young Italian has one hand on the World Championship trophy.

Antonelli has time and again demonstrated the luck that comes with hard work, a fact that has not gone unnoticed by David Coulthard. The driver, who has competed in 246 Grand Prix races (13 wins, runner-up in the 2001 World Championship behind Michael Schumacher), flew to Kuala Lumpur as a Channel 4 correspondent and conducted the first interview with Verstappen, Antonelli and Hamilton following the thrilling Grand Prix.

In his race analysis following the Bahrain Grand Prix, Coulthard said: “Over the years, we’ve seen time and again that champions, in particular, have luck on their side at decisive moments.”

“In my day, and as a rival to Michael Schumacher, it was often the case that Schumi was the luckier one in key moments. Kimi is on a great run, and even a bitter setback like the one at Monza, when he had to start from P19, doesn’t stop him from achieving top results. In fact, he even won in Italy.”

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“Kimi also had a winning streak from China to Monaco, just as we’ve seen with various champions. And if we look at those races in detail, Kimi was favoured by luck on a few occasions.”