Mercedes’ current struggles with its 2025 automotive have performed a task in Kimi Antonelli’s lack of confidence, trackside engineering director Andrew Shovlin believes.
Antonelli has only one point-scoring end within the final seven rounds – his maiden podium in Canada the place teammate George Russell received – and has retired on 4 events in that point. The Italian rookie admitted on the Belgian Grand Prix that he was missing confidence within the automotive, and Shovlin says the hole between the 2 drivers is all the way down to Russell’s expertise if coping with tough equipment.
“I believe what you’ve got seen within the current qualifyings is that George is leaning on his a few years of expertise in an F1 automotive to attempt to take advantage of a tough automotive in terms of qualifying. Kimi hasn’t received that to drop again on, and that is in all probability why you’ve got seen a little bit of a shift in his outcomes lately.
“However it goes again to the actual fact we have to unravel that drawback as a result of there’s nonetheless a protracted solution to go this yr. It’s fairly seemingly one thing that we have modified on the automotive, and we simply must get well a little bit of… simply get again to a baseline the place it is working extra usually.
“Kimi’s had a couple of robust weekends, however he is getting plenty of engineering help from Bono and the engineers on that aspect of the storage. We as a staff are nicely conscious that the factor that we have to give attention to is the weaknesses within the automotive, not the bits that Kimi’s fighting. And the actual fact is that George is leaning on all his expertise, fairly a little bit of it driving tough vehicles, to get the qualifying laps out of it.
“We’re discovering various time in the course of the session. It is simply because George is studying to know when can he belief the automotive and you may lean on it, however he is not getting that feeling from it inherently, he is simply having to work out the place will it really stick and the place will not it.”
Shovlin believes automotive developments throughout this yr has moved the W16 away from its constant degree of efficiency that it had initially of the season, however says the staff has full religion in Antonelli’s talents given what he has already displayed when the automotive is robust.
“Kimi’s on a steep studying curve and he will be getting higher as a driver. The truth that his early performances have been higher than they’re now could be virtually definitely that the automotive’s not as aggressive, and you may see that mirrored in George’s outcomes.
“We have seen it plenty of occasions earlier than as nicely. When a younger driver is available in they usually’re in an excellent automotive, they’ll typically actually impress. When a younger driver is available in they usually’re in a tough automotive, it is very laborious to get it collectively week in, week out.
“We have seen sufficient from Kimi to know that there is a substantial amount of expertise there. However what’s going to assist George can even assist Kimi, and it’ll in all probability assist Kimi extra.”
