Antonelli cites criticism as fuel for F1 title win
MEXICO CITY – Andrea Kimi Antonelli pointed to the low points of his debut Formula 1 season, along with the criticism he faced, as “fuel to the fire” in helping him achieve his World Championship victory.
The Italian secured the title by finishing third at the Mexico City Grand Prix, becoming the youngest champion in the sport’s history and the first from Italy since Alberto Ascari in 1953.
Antonelli stood on the podium alongside race winner Max Verstappen and second-placed Lewis Hamilton, marking the end of a historic and significant season for the Mercedes driver.
Following the race, Antonelli described the moment as surreal yet remained focused on the remaining calendar events, aiming to finish as strongly as he had performed throughout.
“Yeah, I’m still trying to realise and understand at the moment what has just happened,” he told media, including Motorsport Week. “Because, you know, when you work so hard, and since I was a kid, I’ve been dreaming of achieving this, and when you finally achieve it, it’s truly, truly special, and obviously all the emotions as well come out, and to be able as well to share this moment, to witness this moment with my whole family, with my team, and all of my friends as well is a moment that will be always remembered.
“And I’m just super happy and grateful for what has just happened, and all the opportunities, all the support that I’ve got, not only this year but since I joined the team as well, so, yeah, just gonna try to enjoy it all the way, and then enjoy as well the rest of the season, because we still got a few races to go.
“But we still want to finish on a high, and then obviously, this is a new point where to start again, and, yeah, to just build on and improve.”
A third-place finish in Mexico proved sufficient for Kimi Antonelli to claim the title.
2025 criticism served as ‘much more ready’ for Kimi Antonelli.
Antonelli’s championship victory completes a remarkable comeback story after he was heavily criticized during a challenging first campaign last year.
Struggling to adapt to a difficult Mercedes car, Antonelli frequently trailed teammate George Russell, prompting assertions that he was not ready for Formula 1, including comments from former Red Bull advisor Helmut Marko, who suggested he would have been better off in a less prominent team than the Silver Arrows.
When asked by Motorsport Week whether those criticisms provided extra motivation to succeed this year, Antonelli acknowledged that they may have added some impetus to his efforts.
“It’s always good to shut off some of the noise,” he said. “And of course, I think in many ways, it does help to add fuel to the fire, the fact that some people said that I wasn’t belonging to Formula 1, that I wasn’t ready for it, which at some point last year, I probably looked like I wasn’t ready for it.
“But I think last year, being able to experience those moments made me much more ready as well, I had that this year, I think experiencing really low and difficult situations, high pressure moments, really helped me to face certain situations this year, and definitely made me mature a lot as a driver, as a person.
“And still, this year, bad moments where I could have done better, a lot better, so yeah, it’s just a constant learning process.
“But I think last year, being able to race straight into Mercedes, obviously, straight on the spotlight, made me grow much faster than if I would have gone to a smaller team, for example.”
READ MORE – F1 2026 Mexico City Grand Prix – Race Results
