Max Verstappen may be fighting through one of the most frustrating campaigns of his Formula 1 career, but the four-time world champion has found plenty to admire in the young driver currently leading the title race.
Fresh from finishing second at the Hungarian Grand Prix, Verstappen used the final media session before Formula 1’s summer break to salute Andrea Kimi Antonelli’s remarkable rise with Mercedes.
The 19-year-old Italian has been the story of the season. A breakthrough victory in China was followed by five consecutive wins, and Antonelli became the youngest driver ever to lead the Formula 1 world championship.
Despite a retirement in Barcelona and another reliability setback at Silverstone, he still holds a commanding 50-point lead in the Drivers’ standings over Lewis Hamilton.
Verstappen, by contrast, enters the sport’s summer hiatus in sixth place in the championship, 110 points adrift.
Asked which driver had impressed him most in the opening half of the year, Verstappen pointed immediately to Antonelli.
“I think, if you look at the front, Kimi has done a really good job,” the Red Bull driver said. “Really strong, really solid, being the strongest in the team.
“I think, if he just keeps it going – of course, he’s also been very unlucky sometimes, so that’s been a bit of a shame – but as a 19-year-old, so far, I think he’s been rock solid. That’s really impressive to see as an outsider.”
The praise carried extra weight coming from Verstappen, who knows better than most the pressure of carrying title expectations at a young age.
Verstappen also spoke warmly about Antonelli’s character, suggesting that the Italian’s personality is helping him handle the spotlight.
“But, yeah, overall, a very strong performance [from Antonelli]. It’s nice to see. He’s, first of all, a nice guy and a very strong driver, so that’s a good combination,” he said.
The Dutchman admitted his own season has been far less straightforward.
“For me, it’s definitely been a bit of a jungle this year, but I’m just trying to enjoy it where I can. Of course, when the car is a bit nicer to drive, you can enjoy it a little bit more,” he said.
While Verstappen was generous in his praise for Antonelli, he made it clear that Red Bull’s focus during the shutdown will be on recovering lost performance before the championship resumes.
“We need to first find more overall performance,” he explained. “Then we need to fix our problems, where we sometimes just lose performance over a weekend, or even from the start of the race to the end. So, yeah, that is also actually a big priority.”
For now, though, the loudest applause from Formula 1’s biggest star is directed at the teenager leading the championship – a driver Verstappen believes has already shown the poise, speed and consistency of a future champion.
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