Kimi Antonelli Regrets Early Errors at Austrian GP 2026

Andrea Kimi Antonelli admitted his mistakes during the opening laps of the 2026 Austrian Grand Prix prevented him from joining the late battle with Max Verstappen for second place.

The Mercedes driver started fourth on the grid but ran wide several times at Turn 1 while battling Charles Leclerc. Although he recovered to finish third, Antonelli believed the time lost through those early mistakes left him with too much ground to recover in the closing laps.

"I was a bit too excited in the first few laps and definitely didn't drive well because I made too many mistakes. During the first stint on the medium tyres I lost three or four seconds with those mistakes. I was also struggling with the brakes," Antonelli said.

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Antonelli explained that his race changed after the first pit stop. The tyre change allowed him to reset mentally and physically, while Mercedes also showed much stronger pace throughout the second half of the race.

"After I changed tyres, I reset, and the pace at the end was very strong. It was a shame that I joined the party a bit too late. Two or three more laps would have been a lot of fun," he added.

The Italian still secured a third-place finish and retained the lead of the Drivers' Championship, although teammate George Russell reduced the gap to 40 points after taking victory at the Red Bull Ring.

Antonelli also congratulated Russell and Verstappen for their performances, while acknowledging that reducing mistakes will be essential if he wants to maintain his title challenge throughout the remainder of the 2026 Formula 1 season.