Kimi Antonelli Vows 360-Degree Fix After Bahrain Struggles

Formula 1, Sportrik Media – Kimi Antonelli has pledged to work “360 degrees” to fully understand the 2026 challenger of Mercedes AMG Petronas after enduring a disrupted opening pre-season test in Bahrain.

The Italian encountered multiple technical setbacks across the three-day test, leaving him confined to the garage for extended periods. Antonelli completed just 82 laps overall — the lowest mileage among the 22 drivers participating in the first pre-season test.

Despite limited track time, Antonelli finished the final day with the fastest lap of the entire test, underlining the one-lap potential of the Mercedes package even as long-run data remained incomplete.

“The car is lighter, it’s a bit shorter, it’s more agile,” Antonelli told media, including RacingNews365.

“In low speed, the feeling is quite nice because you really feel the car being more agile. In the change of direction in Turns 6 and 7, the car is much quicker than last year. The speed is a bit less, but overall the car is quite nice to drive.”

Antonelli acknowledged that adapting to the new regulatory framework — particularly the revised power unit characteristics — remains a key challenge ahead of the second Bahrain test.

“On the power unit side, it’s very different. Next week I’m going to try to focus on long runs because today on the C1 tyre I didn’t do a great job with tyre management.”

“I will try to work 360 degrees — on long runs and on single laps. Today were my first three proper qualifying laps because we couldn’t attempt them earlier.”

With the second pre-season test looming and the season opener in Melbourne approaching rapidly, Antonelli stressed the urgency of accelerating his learning curve.

“Melbourne is just around the corner, and it’s going to be important.”

After a week defined by limited mileage but promising pace, Mercedes now faces a critical final preparation phase to ensure both performance and reliability are aligned before the 2026 championship begins.