Kimi Antonelli acknowledged that he had a bit of luck to win the first Formula 1 race in Madrid. The Mercedes driver took advantage of the exact moment the Virtual Safety Car (VSC) was deployed to make a pit stop, take the lead, and stay in front until the finish.
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Lando Norris was controlling the race before the neutralization, but Antonelli managed to enter the pits just as the VSC was activated. With the advantage gained during the stop and the switch to hard tires, the Italian took the lead of the Spanish GP and did not lose the position.
“Lando was in control at the front, but we managed to get into the pits as soon as the Virtual Safety Car was deployed, make the stop to put on hard tires, take the lead, and get to the end. So, we probably didn’t deserve to win, but of course, we will accept it,” Antonelli said.
George Russell finished fifth and assessed that the result would hardly have been different regardless of the strategy. The British driver started on hard tires and was disadvantaged by the timing of the VSC, while the drivers who started on mediums were favored by the neutralization.
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“No matter what we had done with the strategy today, we would have finished P5,” Russell concluded. The British driver also highlighted that he had good pace on the hard tires, despite the difficulty in overtaking on the Madrid circuit.
Toto Wolff also pointed out the role of the VSC in Antonelli’s result but highlighted the Italian driver’s ability to control the race after taking the lead. The Mercedes boss considered it especially positive to secure another victory on a circuit very different from Monza, without the team having implemented a major update package since the Canadian GP.
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