© Getty Images
Kimi Antonelli has attended the 2025 Italian Grand Prix Thursday Drivers’ Press Conference. Here is the full transcript!
Q: Alright. Fernando, best of luck this weekend. Thank you for that. Kimi, let’s come to you now. Back at Monza, scene of the announcement last year when you were confirmed as a Mercedes Formula 1 driver. It’s been quite a 12 months since then. Can we start just by reflecting on everything that’s happened since Monza last year?
Kimi ANTONELLI: Yeah, it happened a lot of things. I have good memories, but also really bad memories here. But yeah, I mean, it’s a really special place, and I think it’s going to be a special weekend because it’s not just my second home race, but obviously, as you said, this is where it all started with the announcement. So that’s why it’s going to be a very special one. But, you know, it’s been very intense ever since. And yeah, so far, it’s gone quite okay.
Q: And when you look at car performance, where do you expect to be coming out this weekend?
KA: It’s always tough to say because the cars now are getting closer and closer. But last year, looking at the result, especially in qualifying, they were up there. So this year, it’s been a bit of the trend that the car where it’s been good last year was also quite good this year. So hopefully it’s going to be the same, but we never know.
Q: And when you’re on the simulator, are there similarities between here and Montreal? Of course, Montreal was a great race for the team.
KA: Well, I mean, first of all, it’s a lot lower downforce here, but the first two chicanes are really high braking and then going into a slow corner, similar to Melbourne. But also here you’ve got some quick corners such as the Lesmos, Ascari and Parabolica. So in some way, it’s similar to Montreal in terms of characteristics, but the second half of the lap is a bit different. But hopefully — obviously we’re back on the old suspension, which has given us more confidence — so hopefully we’ll be able to have good pace.
Q: One thing — you talked about this being your second home race. You were quite open after Imola saying that maybe if you’d had that race weekend again, you might have done things differently. There were a lot of demands on your time there. Are you approaching Monza a little differently?
KA: For sure. I will be much more prepared, and I definitely know much better what to expect. I know much better how I need to move around, how I need to behave during the race week in order to be able to be 100% every time I go in the car.
If you like SilverArrows.Net, consider supporting us by buying us a coffee!
QUESTIONS FROM THE FLOOR
Q: (Mara Sangiorgio – Sky Italia) A question to Kimi. Kimi, you told us last week how much you needed a fresh weekend. How do you get rid of bad thoughts like Zandvoort or Monza last year? What’s the way?
KA: Just focusing on myself, just focusing on what I have to do. It’s really easy to get lost and focus too much on the final result. Instead, I think it’s much better — and this I haven’t been doing super well — but just focusing on the things I have to do: driving well, putting things together, and helping the team the best way to find the best balance as well. So I think that’s the main thing — just trying to focus on myself and trying to get every detail right.
Q: (Craig Slater – Sky Sports) F1 boss Stefano Domenicali has talked about maybe young fans having shorter attention spans, and maybe we need more Sprints or maybe even Grand Prix should be reduced in length. What do you think about that? Who’d like to start? Go on, Kimi.
KA: It’s a tough one. I think personally, Sprint weekends are fun because you have a lot of activity. You have to be on point straight away because you have one practice, then qualifying, and then you go into a Sprint race. But I think shorter races — I don’t think it would really work, because already now with long races, we do one-stop strategy with the tyres we have. They would have to implement so many more rules for a shorter race in terms of pit stops and so on, because I don’t think it would change so much. I think also with the longer race, probably you have more time to build your race. But yeah, I don’t really know. I can’t really give a clear answer on this, but that’s my thought. But Sprint weekends are fun, so that wouldn’t be bad — having more of them.
Q: (David Croft – Sky Sports F1) Question to Kimi. If a rookie year is all about learning, what did you learn from Imola that you have changed for this — so that when you say you’re better prepared for this, your second race, you’ll do differently?
KA: Well, definitely when I said I’ll be more prepared — obviously, it was my first home race and there was a lot going on, especially outside the track. I think also on my side, I didn’t manage energy the best way, and just going back in the car and not feeling 100%, also focus-wise. So I feel like on that side I will know much better how to react and how to behave. I think that’s going to be the main learning — also trying to manage the energy the best way possible during the whole weekend. Because, obviously, you start the weekend and then as you go, as you arrive to Sunday, of course you have a bit less energy overall. But the most important is that you arrive with the most amount of energy. I remember being in Imola and already from the Saturday I was pretty tired. So yeah, definitely that was a good learning and I don’t want that to happen again.
Q: (Panagiotis Seitanidis – Antenna TV Greece) A question for Kimi. Obviously, you are the home hero and whole Italy cheers for you. But when you were in Santorini this summer, everybody was sending me pictures — “Oh, Kimi’s here, Kimi’s there.” How do you cope with this sudden stardom of F1 even in places where there is no race and you don’t have your team kit? And secondly, what did you like about our country?
KA: Well, first of all, I love Greece. I went already a couple of times and I think it’s a really great place to spend summer — whether with family, with a girlfriend, or with friends. I think it’s really nice, the place, first of all, because it allows you to disconnect and to relax. And the other question — you kind of expect it a little bit, especially when you’re racing at the peak of the sport. But it’s obviously super nice to see that there are already a lot of fans supporting you. I just try to embrace this as well — getting the positive energy from them. Of course, sometimes you need to maybe say no, but in that occasion, on holiday, I was happy with that. I was just trying to get the positive energy from them, and it’s always nice to have these kinds of things.
Q: (Leonid Kliuev – GrandePremio.com.br) In Zandvoort, Carlos was quite vocal about the stewards’ decision on the collision with Liam. Did you guys talk about it in the drivers’ WhatsApp group? And are you now unsure what’s allowed and what’s not?
KA: I mean, not really. I was already busy with my stuff and with what I did. So I didn’t really have to look at it.
Q: A question for Kimi. After what happened in Zandvoort, do you think it’s best for you that there is another race straight away, even if that comes with the extra pressure of being on home soil?
KA: Yeah. For sure. I think in the race I was having good momentum. The pace was strong, and especially on that hard tire I felt pretty well. I was able to catch, lap by lap, the group in front. And then of course, the contact happened, which obviously was not ideal. In the moment I felt like going for it, also because it was probably my only chance. So yeah, just a shame — obviously it wasn’t me. But of course it’s always nice to have a back-to-back race because, despite what happened, I can still carry this momentum into this race weekend, especially after seeing that the pace overall was better. So hopefully we can keep working, keep improving, and then deliver a great result this weekend.
Q: (Carlo Platella – FormulaPassion.it) About the possible increase in the number of sprint races — do you think that it will make life for rookies more difficult, considering they will have less time in practice to learn and experiment?
KA: I think yeah. I mean, it obviously depends on the track. If it’s a new track, it’s a bit tougher for rookies because they have to get up to speed — like we had to do in a couple of occasions this year, such as China, Miami, and Austin as well with Sprint. So sometimes it’s tough. But if you have the confidence, you’re able to build up into the session and find your rhythm pretty quick. Compared to more experienced drivers, it can be a bit of a disadvantage because you don’t know the detail of the track, where you can make most of the time and where you can lose the most. But overall, if you’re able to get up to speed quickly, and especially if you have the confidence, you can still deliver a good result even with one practice.
Source: FIA.com
