Kimi Antonelli’s victory at the Italian Grand Prix in Formula 1 is still generating repercussions, and George Russell received a harsh evaluation after finishing behind his teammate. For David Coulthard, the result was especially difficult to explain because Russell started ahead, while Antonelli started from the back of the grid.
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Kimi Antonelli started in P19 and managed to turn a complicated race into a victory in front of the Italian crowd. The red flag in the early laps helped the Mercedes driver quickly reduce the gap to the rivals, but he still had to move up through the pack after the restart before completing the recovery.
On the Up to Speed podcast, Coulthard said he felt for Russell upon seeing the Briton being overtaken by his teammate after starting in second position: “I really felt for George because he was defeated, and you could see, he was trying to be philosophical about it. It’s embarrassing, isn’t it? Starting ahead and being beaten by your teammate who started from the back,” said the former F1 driver.
Coulthard acknowledged that Russell remains a fast driver and Grand Prix winner but assessed that Antonelli currently has the advantage in the internal Mercedes duel. For him, the Monza result reinforced the difficulty the Briton has in finding an answer to the Italian’s performance.
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“We are left with this scenario where George is ‘licking his wounds’. Kimi now has seven wins in Formula 1, is one step closer to being world champion, with no signs that George really has an answer for him,” he added.
The former driver continued, saying that Russell is recognized as fast but considered that Antonelli has been getting the better of the contest: “We know George is a Grand Prix winner, we know he is fast, but he simply doesn’t have an answer for Kimi,” Coulthard concluded.
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