Max Verstappen has offered his support to Andrea Kimi Antonelli after the Mercedes driver crashed during qualifying for the Azerbaijan Grand Prix at the Baku City Circuit. The incident occurred when Antonelli hit the inside wall at Turn 1 on his second push lap in Q1, ending his qualifying session early and forcing him to start Saturday's race from 16th on the grid.
Verstappen, the reigning world champion, believes such mistakes are part of the learning curve for a young driver. "Something like that can happen. Obviously this sucks for him, but he is still very young," Verstappen told Motorsport.com. "Maybe people forget that sometimes, also in the way they talk about him this season. But this is a learning moment and it's simply part of the process."
However, Verstappen stressed that such errors cannot happen too often, especially to keep his championship hopes alive. "You can't afford to do it too often, of course, but with his speed I think it will all be fine. But it's obviously still frustrating. He will be the most frustrated about it himself, but Kimi still has every opportunity to score very good points on Saturday," he added.
Antonelli himself was furious with his mistake. He admitted that the changing track conditions caught him out, particularly the amount of front grip he had when turning in. Nevertheless, the mistake does not derail his title charge. With an 81-point lead over his closest rival, the Italian is in a comfortable position. Moreover, Mercedes is expected to be strong in Baku, so Antonelli should still be able to secure a solid points finish.
His teammate George Russell is also optimistic about a comeback drive. Russell even joked about Antonelli's sensational victory at Monza from 19th on the grid. "You can't discount Kimi. He started 19th in Monza and now he's in 16th, so he should be leading by a few laps earlier this time!" Russell said.
With Mercedes' speed in Baku and Antonelli's determination to fight back, the Azerbaijan Grand Prix is set to be a proving ground for the young driver. Both Verstappen and Russell are looking forward to Antonelli's charge through the field, believing he still has a great chance to secure a strong result.
Baca Juga
Max Verstappen beri dukungan kepada Kimi Antonelli usai crash kualifikasi F1 Baku. Verstappen ingatkan pentingnya proses belajar pembalap muda.
Charles Leclerc dikritik David Coulthard karena membawa anjing ke paddock F1. Coulthard sebut F1 bukan piknik, sementara Brittny Button bela Leclerc.
Max Verstappen terancam penalti grid setelah masalah mesin di kualifikasi F1 Baku. Pembalap Red Bull itu hanya finis kedelapan di Q3 dan dipastikan akan menerima hukuman sebelum musim berakhir.
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