Kimi Antonelli eyes 'fight' in major Mercedes boost

Kimi Antonelli is confident Mercedes are "in the fight" at this weekend's Azerbaijan Grand Prix, following a positive opening day at the Baku City Circuit. 

Mercedes ended second practice with George Russell in third and Antonelli in fourth, respectively. It represented a major boost after a tricky Italian GP, where the Silver Arrows found itself comfortably adrift of the leaders. 

For Antonelli in particular, the young Italian entered Baku on a run of three points in six races, due to a nightmare European leg. 

Based on the first day of track action in Azerbaijan, it would appear an immediate strong start to the flyaway races is on the cards for the 19-year-old.

"I think it was a pretty positive day," said Antonelli. "I was building up, taking it a bit easier today, as obviously it's a street circuit. Just trying to build my confidence step by step. 

"Especially, FP2 felt pretty good. Obviously, FP1, there was the big interruption. So you kind of lose a little bit of rhythm. But in FP2 I was able to build lap by lap. 

"There's still a little bit to work to do. I think, still two, three tenths to find. But, I think it was a pretty positive day, and something we can build on tomorrow as well."

Antonelli predicts tyre conundrum

For this weekend, Pirelli has gone a step softer with its range of tyres compared to last season, creating an interesting storyline. 

Not for the first time this year, the medium compound could be the most used tyre in qualifying, with Antonelli predicting that it could have a significant appearance on Saturday. 

He recognised that there remains a few tenths to find to catch Ferrari, but is aware how tricky things could become when deciding which tyre to run in qualifying.

"Yeah, definitely there's always something to find," added Antonelli. "Ferrari looks pretty quick, but I think we can be in the fight.

"And of course, McLaren, I think today didn't really show its real pace, so I think it can be very tight tomorrow.

"We'll see also with the tyres, because it seems like the medium is the faster tyre. So it's going to be quite tricky tomorrow, but we'll do our best."