Kimi Antonelli Reflects on P2 Finish in Miami Sprint Qualifying Amid Mercedes' Struggles

Kimi Antonelli breathed a sigh of relief as he secured a front-row start for the Miami Sprint at the Miami International Autodrome, following what he described as a 'messy session' for Mercedes. Despite the challenges, Antonelli managed to pull off a second-place finish in Sprint Qualifying, a commendable feat considering the difficulties he faced with the W17.

Heading into the weekend, Antonelli had hinted at a potentially tough battle. Mercedes was bracing for a renewed challenge from rivals who had brought significant upgrades, including McLaren, Ferrari, and Red Bull. The first day unfolded as unexpectedly challenging for the Silver Arrows, with technical issues disrupting their Free Practice plans and preventing Antonelli from running on the soft tyres.

When qualifying began, the Mercedes team found themselves in the thick of a competitive tussle with McLaren, Ferrari, and Red Bull's Max Verstappen for the top grid positions. Ultimately, reigning World Champion Lando Norris clinched pole.

Antonelli's struggle for grip on medium tyres during SQ1 and SQ2 was evident, but he managed to rally and secure second place with his only SQ3 lap on softs. Meanwhile, his teammate Russell had to settle for sixth.

"It was a pretty messy session," Antonelli admitted to the media. "I struggled a lot with the car. On the medium, I couldn’t get a good lap in, and then on the softs, the car just came alive, and I felt more comfortable."

Reflecting on the lack of soft tyre running in FP1, Antonelli noted it was unfortunate but maintained that the team had done well to recover. "Despite everything, it was a decent result, and with the team, we did a great job on recovering," he added. "We’ll dig deep tonight to see what we can do better for tomorrow."

When asked about the pace shown by McLaren and Ferrari, Antonelli reiterated his earlier comments about expecting a tough weekend, acknowledging the significant upgrades his rivals brought. "They’ve obviously closed the gap massively or even gone in front of us," he said. "The McLarens, with the same power unit as us, improved a lot, so it was expected for them to be at the front. But I think we can be in the fight, and that’s what we’re going to try to do tomorrow and then on Sunday as well."