Kimi Antonelli 'empty' after latest 'concerning' Mercedes F1 failure

Kimi Antonelli is feeling "empty" after his late retirement from the Barcelona-Catalunya Grand Prix, following another Mercedes failure. 

Antonelli was running in second place in the closing stages, having just passed team-mate George Russell to run behind Lewis Hamilton. 

However, he suffered from what Mercedes called an "electrical shutdown" - the latest in a Mercedes HPP series of failures, including for Russell in Canada, and issues affecting McLaren in China and Monaco. 

Following Hamilton's win, Antonelli's lead in the championship is down to 41 points, with Russell 50 behind.

Reflecting, Antonelli felt he could hold his head "high" despite the failure not allowing him to collect the 18 points.

"All of a sudden, I was at the apex of Turn 5, and the car just gave up," Antonelli told media, including RacingNews365.

"It is a part of racing, so there is nothing we can do about it. It is no one's fault, but it is a bit of a concern because we've had several issues so far this year.

"Our package is really strong, but it is just a point we need to work on, because losing so many points in these races hurts, but obviously I feel very empty emotionally right now.

"I'm still trying to [process] what has just happened, but I still leave the track with my head held high, because the pace was good and I'm already looking forward to Austria, because I think we can do really well."