Formula 1 expert Jolyon Palmer warns against premature comparisons between Mercedes rookie Kimi Antonelli and his teammate George Russell
Former Formula 1 driver Jolyon Palmer warns against jumping to conclusions and immediately labeling Mercedes driver Kimi Antonelli as the fundamentally better driver compared to his teammate George Russell.
The internal dynamics within the Brackley-based team were once again under scrutiny at the British Grand Prix. While Russell inherited second place behind Ferrari winner Charles Leclerc, it was Antonelli who demonstrated the better raw pace.
The Italian rookie was well on his way to battling Leclerc for the win before a loose wheel cover caused him to have steering issues and struggle to keep the car on the track. He finished the race but dropped to 15th place after receiving a penalty for exceeding track limits.
Is it too early to judge Antonelli?
Although he secured a podium finish in front of his home fans, Russell admitted after the race that he “didn’t deserve to be where I was.”
In the latest episode of F1 Nation, Palmer acknowledged that Russell is currently in a difficult situation. However, he also argued that the “data set” isn’t yet large enough to confirm that Antonelli is the better driver.
“He’s in a difficult spot. The only thing I’d say about that is that the data set simply isn’t large enough to claim that Kimi is outright the better driver,” Palmer explained.
The talent is there, but …
“He’s young. He’s obviously a prodigy. Mercedes has been with him since he was a kid. And when you see talents like that rising so quickly—you naturally think of Max [Verstappen], you think of various other drivers who’ve burst onto the scene as once-in-a-generation talents. That’s how it feels right now. But is it perhaps a quirk of the car?”
“They have to be driven a little differently than under the previous regulations, as we’ve already mentioned. Max doesn’t seem to feel very comfortable with this car. Charles [Leclerc] certainly doesn’t. Lewis [Hamilton] has fought back.”
“Different driving styles could work here, so for George, this might just be a phase of figuring things out. If the cars continue to evolve or change again in this era, we might see things settle back into place.“
”I feel like the data set is still pretty small when it comes to seeing Kimi in an absolute sweet spot. Only as things continue to develop will we see if he’s a champion, a once-in-a-generation talent, and all that.”