Mercedes’ current struggles with its 2025 automotive have performed a task in Kimi Antonelli’s lack of confidence, trackside engineering director Andrew Shovlin believes.
Antonelli has only one point-scoring end within the final seven rounds – his maiden podium in Canada the place teammate George Russell gained – and has retired on 4 events in that point. The Italian rookie admitted on the Belgian Grand Prix that he was missing confidence within the automotive, and Shovlin says the hole between the 2 drivers is right down to Russell’s expertise if coping with tough equipment.
“I believe what you have seen within the current qualifyings is that George is leaning on his a few years of expertise in an F1 automotive to attempt to benefit from a tough automotive in relation to qualifying. Kimi hasn’t bought that to drop again on, and that is in all probability why you have seen a little bit of a shift in his outcomes not too long ago.
“Nevertheless it goes again to the actual fact we have to unravel that drawback as a result of there’s nonetheless an extended method to go this yr. It’s fairly doubtless one thing that we have modified on the automotive, and we simply must get well a little bit of… simply get again to a baseline the place it is working extra usually.
“Kimi’s had a number of robust weekends, however he is getting lots of engineering assist from Bono and the engineers on that facet of the storage. We as a workforce are effectively conscious that the factor that we have to deal with is the weaknesses within the automotive, not the bits that Kimi’s battling. And the actual fact is that George is leaning on all his expertise, fairly a little bit of it driving tough automobiles, to get the qualifying laps out of it.
“We’re discovering various time through the session. It is simply because George is studying to know when can he belief the automotive and you’ll lean on it, however he isn’t getting that feeling from it inherently, he is simply having to work out the place will it really stick and the place will not it.”
Shovlin believes automotive developments throughout this yr has moved the W16 away from its constant degree of efficiency that it had in the beginning of the season, however says the workforce has full religion in Antonelli’s talents given what he has already displayed when the automotive is robust.
“Kimi’s on a steep studying curve and he’ll be getting higher as a driver. The truth that his early performances had been higher than they’re now’s nearly actually that the automotive’s not as aggressive, and you’ll see that mirrored in George’s outcomes.
“We have seen it a number of occasions earlier than as effectively. When a younger driver is available in they usually’re in an excellent automotive, they’ll usually actually impress. When a younger driver is available in they usually’re in a tough automotive, it is very arduous to get it collectively week in, week out.
“We have seen sufficient from Kimi to know that there is quite a lot of expertise there. However what’s going to assist George may also assist Kimi, and it’ll in all probability assist Kimi extra.”
