The Formula 1 teams replaced a quarter of the field for the first free practice of the Mexico City Grand Prix, and five teams also had young players. Among them was Andrea Kimi Antonelli at Mercedes.

The team’s driver, already announced for next year, quickly found himself in the wall in Monza during the Italian weekend, so he was in Mexico for the available 60 minutes. “It was definitely better, I drove much more calmly. I didn’t want to take any risks, I just wanted to complete a clean training session, run a few laps and understand the car and the tires a little better,” said the Italian.


F1: The Merci youngster pulled himself together after the car crash 1

Andrea Kimi Antonelli (Kép: Peter Fox – Formula 1/Formula 1 via Getty Images)

“Of course I felt that I was not at the limit,” he said, adding that even after loading the soft tires, he did not drive the soul out of Lewis Hamilton’s car. “I tried to build my confidence round by round. It was my first time on this track, so I tried to learn as much as I could.”

Although he was particularly attentive now, Antonelli’s training was not without problems. On one occasion, he also drove over a part, which damaged the floor plate. “Honestly, I didn’t see it. It’s a shame,” he said. It’s true that he still did better than George Russell, who seriously wrecked his Mercedes on Friday.