Kimi Antonelli may have conquered the streets of Monte Carlo last weekend, but he was completely powerless against the sticky hands of global reality TV royalty.
In what has quickly become the most hilariously public micro-drama of the season, a quirky mishap that occurred during the Monaco Grand Prix podium ceremony reached a peaceful, plush conclusion on Friday at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya.
The internet-breaking moment unfolded in full view of the world’s television cameras. Antonelli had just driven a masterclass to secure a historic victory ahead of Lewis Hamilton, and received his winner's trophy from Monaco's Prince Albert.
Standing atop the Mercedes driver’s No. 1 podium block in parc fermé, a pristine white towel had been laid out for the Mercedes driver.
Enter Kim Kardashian. Attending the glamorous race to support Hamilton, the reality TV star found herself caught up in the sticky champagne spraying crossfire of the celebrations.
Needing a quick clean-up, she casually reached for the race winner's designated towel to wipe her hands and face, and walked away with it – unwittingly pulling off the most viewed heist in F1 history.
The microfiber fallout
Because the entire blunder was caught on video, there was no hiding the evidence. The Mercedes social media team immediately went to town with the footage, releasing a comedic video of Antonelli looking for his missing gear, while George Russell even jumped in to mock the situation.
By the time the paddock arrived in Spain, the joke had snowballed so much that journalists brought it up during Thursday’s official FIA press conference.
When asked if his championship-winning memorabilia had been returned by the billionaire influencer, Antonelli kept the banter alive.
“No, still looking for it,” he explained with a smile.
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While the original Monaco microfiber is likely gone forever – perhaps destined for a cameo on a reality TV episode – a gracious Kardashian made sure to send a proper peace offering to the Mercedes garage on Friday in Barcelona.
Antonelli was thus presented with a special delivery wrapped neatly in a bow: a brand-new, ultra-premium white towel.
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To ensure there was no mistaking its owner this time, the fabric featured custom, personalized embroidery reading: “To Kimi from Kim”.
Mercedes filmed the handoff for an Instagram update, showing the young Italian smiling as he draped the replacement over his shoulders.
Closing the book on F1's funniest celebrity mix-up, Antonelli looked directly into the camera to thank his high-profile fan: “Thank you Kim.”
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