Kimi Antonelli is hoping a return to Mercedes' older rear suspension this weekend in Budapest will help him recapture the "good feeling" he enjoyed earlier in the season, particularly in qualifying, after a string of underwhelming results.
The 18-year-old rookie confirmed the change ahead of the Hungarian Grand Prix, where he’s aiming to reset before the summer break.
After an encouraging debut with Mercedes – including a remarkable podium in Canada – Antonelli has only scored points once in the past seven races, raising questions about his recent form. But as he explained, the switch to a newer suspension layout earlier this year had unintended consequences for his confidence and performance.
“First of all, we’re going back on the old suspension, so hopefully it will bring the good feeling back,” Antonelli told the media at the Hungaroring on Thursday. “The goal is really to deliver a good qualifying and try to drive at my best.”
“Since we went on the new suspension, the car was a bit trickier to drive, especially on tracks where there was high-speed context, so high-speed corners, high-speed combined,” he said.
©Mercedes
“Also, because of my driving style, I was making the car even more unpredictable, and that killed a bit my confidence. I struggled to adapt as well a little bit to the car, and that is why I couldn’t extract the best out of it.
“George, I think, with his experience, he adapted much quicker and better, and he was able to extract each weekend the maximum out of the car.”
After a difficult outing at Spa-Francorchamps where he finished 16th, Antonelli used the short break before Hungary to reset mentally.
“I definitely tried to rest and reflect on the previous races, and trying to understand where I could have done better and how,” he said.
“But also, I took time for myself. I did fun activities such as driving my remote control car, and all activities that help the mindset and help to get back even stronger on the track.
“I’ve definitely been also trying to prepare for the weekend in the best way possible, and now I feel happy. I’m really happy to be here and I’m ready to give my best before heading to the summer break.”
On the other side of the SilverArrows garage, Russell acknowledged that Mercedes as a whole has lost performance in recent rounds and is looking to course-correct with setup changes and a simplified approach.
“Clearly, our performance as a team has gone backwards in the last six or seven races, and we’re trying to unpick why that may have been,” said the Briton. “I think there’s a number of factors at play.”
“Obviously, we struggle in the hotter conditions – Spa wasn’t hot, but generally we struggle in the hotter conditions. We brought some things with updates, and we think that may not have been performing as we had hoped, so we’ll revert back on some small items.
“I think we potentially just lost our way slightly, so we’re going to go back to basics, focus on the main parts of the car, and see where that takes us.”
Russell also came to Antonelli’s defense amid his teammate’s dip in results.
“Without doubt, it has been harder to drive in these last races than it was at the start of the season,” Russell said. “But when you look at our performance collectively, we’ve just both gone backwards.
“Kimi had an unfortunate weekend in Spa, but his pace, if anything, was closer to me than it was in races at the start of the year."
“The difference was that at the start of the season, I was qualifying second or third or pole in Canada, and Kimi was in fourth, fifth or sixth. Whereas now, I’m qualifying in sixth, seventh or sometimes out in Q2."
“We’re closer to the midfield, so I don’t think he has anything really to worry about, and it’s just a bad run of form for us.”
As Mercedes eyes a recovery in Budapest, all eyes will be on Antonelli to see if this setup shift can put him back on track – and whether it marks a turning point heading into the season’s second half.
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