Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes): “There’s no number 1”

In the World Championship standings, Mercedes driver Kimi Antonelli is the clear number one in Formula 1. Following his victory at Monza last Sunday, he leads the World Championship table with a 66-point lead over his team-mate George Russell. That is the equivalent of more than two race wins, whilst Russell has retired from one race. For Russell, closing that gap under his own steam is difficult, if not impossible. The Briton said himself: “If I want to win this World Championship, I’ll need a bit of luck too.”

And who is the number one within the Mercedes team? There has been repeated discussion recently about team orders. At what point should the team lay down the law to prevent fierce internal battles? When, if necessary, must priority be given to one driver to secure the Constructors’ Championship?

Antonelli: “I’m not the real leader”

Kimi Antonelli comes across as very relaxed on the surface and, at least officially, isn’t at all concerned about the internal team hierarchy: “There is no number one driver within Mercedes. The team gives us the same opportunities. George is an incredible driver and he’s been on form in recent races. But I don’t feel there’s a number one. The team treats us equally and gives us the same options. I’m not the real leader or anything like that; we’re both on the same level.”

And he doesn’t want to think too much about the World Championship either – at least that’s what he says publicly. Antonelli: “There’s still a long way to go and it’s still early in the season. I don’t want to be racing whilst thinking about the World Championship. Monza was a bit of proof that I was simply trying to win, to give it my best. That’s the mindset. Of course, there may be decisions to make in the future where I have to think about the World Championship. But what I want to avoid is worrying about the World Championship during practice, qualifying or even the race itself.”

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