Juan Pablo Montoya sees not Lewis Hamilton or George Russell, but Kimi Antonelli himself as the biggest threat to the Mercedes driver’s first world championship title
If you believe former Formula 1 driver Juan Pablo Montoya, Kimi Antonelli himself is the biggest threat to his first world championship title. “They need to shut the garage; he just has to focus on himself,” he said on F1 TV ahead of the Spa race weekend. “He can control this situation.”
The seven-time Grand Prix winner and two-time Indy 500 champion sees the mental aspect of leading the championship as a potential problem. “When the points lead shrinks, you start thinking about it,” Montoya explains. “And as soon as you start thinking about it, you’re going to have problems.”
The gap between the championship leader and his teammate George Russell had gradually narrowed ahead of the Belgian Grand Prix. Technical issues had cost the 19-year-old crucial championship points in Barcelona, while at Silverstone, a part of his car had become lodged in the suspension.
In addition, Antonelli had been a bit too cautious in qualifying at Spielberg, allowing Russell to secure pole position—and ultimately the victory—despite a yellow flag.
“Of course it’s frustrating,” the Mercedes driver replied when asked by our sister site Motorsport.com at Spa-Francorchamps. “But that’s motorsport—these things just happen. Of course, I think that’s enough for now, but it’s part of the sport.”
“You can’t control these external factors,” Antonelli said. “You just have to take advantage of every opportunity and maximize everything I can control. Then we’ll see how the rest plays out. But that’s part of the sport, and the team is doing a fantastic job of ensuring these problems don’t happen again.”
At least on the Ardennes roller coaster, the former Williams driver’s fears did not come true. In the end, Antonelli won the Grand Prix and extended his lead in the Formula 1 World Championship.
The gap between the championship leader and Lewis Hamilton in second place is 45 points, while the two Silver Arrows are separated by as many as 50 points. This ties in with Montoya’s closing statement before the weekend: “If they can get Kimi to focus on Kimi-things, then everything will be fine.”
