Andrea Kimi Antonelli, driver for Mercedes and current leader of the F1 championship, has expressed his concern about his complications at the start of races this season. According to him, addressing these difficulties is a “fundamental” issue and a solution needs to be found soon.
During the first three races of 2026, Antonelli has lost a total of 18 positions on the first lap. However, thanks to victories in China and Japan, he maintains the championship lead.
Among the causes of his problems, he highlights the lack of battery power in the opening race in Melbourne and the suffering from wheel slip in Japan when he released the throttle too abruptly.
The new regulations introduced for 2026 have changed the starting procedure, requiring drivers to increase engine revs for at least 10 seconds, as the MGU-H has been eliminated. Although this new rule comes with additional safety, Antonelli has his reservations about the effectiveness of these modifications in improving his situation.
They fear that this low power detection system, designed to automatically activate the MGU-K if insufficient acceleration is detected, might have a limited impact. He himself has stated: “My problem is more fundamental, so I think this modification will not be of much help to me”.
At the team level, they have been working together during the break, trying to identify and correct the root of the problem. Antonelli feels optimistic, but acknowledges that the process will not be simple and will require changes in the throttle control as well as in his hand positioning.
After the race in Miami, where he hopes to make progress, the next challenge will be in Montreal (from May 22 to 24), and he is expected to arrive at this event with an increasingly intense title fight. Antonelli currently leads by nine points over his teammate, George Russell.
David referred to the mental pressure involved in fighting for the championship for the first time and expressed his intention to stay focused and not lose sight of the present moment, with the aim of continuing to improve race by race.
Written by FormulaRapidaAI
SourceID: SRC_270c2e6c4dc893654f29d592bbe77418108853af