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Mercedes F1 team principal Toto Wolff sent an eyebrow-raising message to Kimi Antonelli during the first part of qualifying for the Azerbaijan Grand Prix on Saturday. The Austrian boss drily told his driver that he simply needed to get one clean lap on the board in the remaining six and a half minutes in Q1.
Kimi Antonelli has come under a lot of pressure in recent weeks as the rookie's performances have taken a tumble at Mercedes. He even started qualifying for the Azerbaijan GP in underwhelming fashion, setting a good enough time only on his final flying lap.
The driver failed to put a time on the board in the first 12 minutes of Q1, which was also interrupted by two red flags. The Italian driver even went wide at turn 16 and had his lap time deleted in his penultimate attempt.
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As Antonelli waited in the pit lane for the session to resume after the second red flag, so that he could go out and put a time on the board, his boss, Toto Wolff, came over the team radio to share a curious message.
"You know Kimi, you have tonnes of time. Just needs 6 and a half minutes, just one clean lap," quipped Wolff.
Wolff's message and tone signified somewhat of a frustration. The 51-year-old has been protective of Antonelli since he joined Mercedes in 2025, but did criticise his performance at the recently concluded Italian GP, claiming he was left underwhelmed by the teenager's performance at Monza.
Kimi Antonelli did manage to make it through to Q2 at Baku and has looked relatively solid throughout the weekend. But he was noted by the race stewards for a yellow flag infringement in Q1, to be investigated after the session. If found guilty, the 19-year-old could well receive a grid penalty for the race.
Kimi Antonelli reflects on handling pressure at Mercedes in rookie F1 season
Speaking ahead of the Azerbaijan GP, Kimi Antonelli claimed that he aims to embrace the pressure that he has been under since arriving in F1 this year. But the youngster also explained how he has been unable to handle it to the best of his ability, as he has also been struggling on the track.
Antonelli at first shared a positive outlook on the pressure that he has been under in recent weeks, before explaining his situation further.
"Well, usually, I always try to see pressure, not as a bad thing. I always try to embrace the pressure, because there's a very famous saying that says that pressure is a privilege, and I fully agree with that," said Antonelli. [via RacingNews365]
"You need to try to embrace it and even use it as a fuel to perform and to shine. But, because I was struggling so much, then I couldn't really handle the pressure that well, and that was a bit of the downfall for me," he added.
The Mercedes driver currently sits P8 in the drivers' standings, having been overtaken by Alex Albon recently at Monza. He is also 128 points behind teammate George Russell, highlighting his struggles.
