Kimi Antonelli believes his spirited intra-team battle with George Russell would have continued all the way to the chequered flag in Montreal if it were not for his team-mate’s untimely retirement.
The 19-year-old took victory at the Canadian Grand Prix, his fourth win in a row, whilst the British driver suffered a power unit failure whilst leading at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve.
After tensions flared during the sprint, the pair re-engaged their fight for supremacy at Mercedes.
What transpired was a frenetic, drama-filled opening 29 laps to the 68-lap race before Russell’s W17 faltered.
Just as the team was considering calling off their battle, his misfortune was Antonelli’s gain, and the path was paved for the Italian to open up a 43-point advantage atop the F1 drivers’ standings.
However, the four-time grand prix winner was asked what he thought would have happened if Russell had remained in the hunt.
“Well, I mean, I think at the end of the stint I had a little bit the upper hand because I had a little bit more pace,” he told media, including ApexF1News.
“I think he had a bit more pace initially, but then he deg’d a little bit more, but it would have been very close.”
Antonelli doubled down on his post-race team radio message, where he said it was not how he wanted to win, before adding: “And of course it was not good to see him having the failure because, as I said, it would have been a very intense fight all the way until the end.
“It would have been interesting to see how it would have ended up, but it’s definitely difficult to say.”
