Kimi Antonelli delivers Mercedes instruction after latest setback

Kimi Antonelli has stated Mercedes must work to fix its reliability concerns after being plagued by setbacks at recent events.

Antonelli suffered a late-race retirement from the Barcelona-Catalunya Grand Prix last Sunday while on course for a second-place finish.

Just two races prior, Antonelli's team-mate George Russell did not see the chequered flag as he too suffered a significant power unit failure.

Following the fresh issues in Spain, Russell stated the situation was a “big concern” for Mercedes as it seeks to win its first F1 title since 2021 this year.

Antonelli echoed his team-mate's words, telling media including RacingNews365: “It’s a bit of a concern because we've had quite a few issues so far in the year.

“Our package is really strong, but it’s a point that we need to work on, because losing so many points and these kind of races hurt.”

Antonelli lacked pace compared to Russell for much of the weekend but appeared quicker in the race.

The Italian pulled off an overtake on his team-mate just moments before he was struck with the terminal issue.

Dissecting his race, Antonelli stated: “We had a really strong pace. I had one opportunity in stint two as well.

“If I get that opportunity, and it can be a different race. We were very quick, it was really hard to follow the car because it was so warm, the tyres were overheating so much.

“The car was just sliding when being close to the car in front, so it was hard to manage.

“But we had really strong pace, and once I got the opportunity, I went for it.

“Of course, it was a shame to have the issue with so little laps remaining. It is what it is, it’s part of racing and now we focus on the next one.”