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🇦🇺 Australia /Sports

Antonelli’s Monza Victory Sparks Schumacher Comparisons After Historic Recovery

From ABC Australia · () English

Translated from English and summarized by DistantNews. Read the original for the full story.

At a glance

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  • Mercedes driver Kimi Antonelli won the Italian Grand Prix from 19th on the grid after making 26 overtakes and extending his championship lead over teammate George Russell to 66 points.
  • The 20-year-old became the first Italian in 60 years to win the race and moved into contention to become Formula 1’s youngest champion.
  • Former driver Juan Pablo Montoya compared rivals’ reluctance to fight Antonelli with how drivers reacted when Michael Schumacher approached during his dominant Ferrari years.

Michael Schumacher tributes filled Monza last weekend, but the most striking homage to the seven-time world champion came from a young Italian driving for Mercedes. Kimi Antonelli won his home Grand Prix after starting 19th, producing a recovery that former driver Juan Pablo Montoya said evoked Schumacher’s presence on track.

Ferrari ran special liveries for Schumacher, while Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton wore one-off suits carrying his logo. Sebastian Vettel also drove Schumacher’s 2002 championship-winning Ferrari around the circuit. Antonelli then delivered the weekend’s defining performance.

Something that was incredible was how easy he was passing people.

· Juan Pablo MontoyaMontoya praised Antonelli’s overtaking performance after the Italian Grand Prix.

A grid penalty had left Antonelli facing the prospect of seeing his 59-point championship advantage shrink. Instead, he made 26 overtakes, taking the lead on lap 18 of 53 before making another charge after a pit stop with 24 laps remaining. The victory made him the first Italian to win at Monza in 60 years and increased his lead over teammate George Russell to 66 points.

It’s a little bit [like] when I raced with Michael Schumacher. When Michael was coming through, people would get out of the way for Michael.

· Juan Pablo MontoyaMontoya compared rivals’ response to Antonelli with how drivers reacted to Schumacher.

Montoya, who won seven races during Schumacher’s Ferrari dominance, focused on how other drivers dealt with Antonelli. On F1 TV, he said, “Something that was incredible was how easy he was passing people.” Montoya added, “It’s a little bit [like] when I raced with Michael Schumacher. When Michael was coming through, people would get out of the way for Michael.”

He said rivals now appear to make the same calculation about Antonelli: “They know Antonelli is going to get you, they’re not even bother about fighting with him.” Montoya contrasted Max Verstappen’s prolonged battle with Russell against his less determined fight when Antonelli arrived. With nine or 10 race weekends remaining, depending on whether the Middle East events go ahead, Antonelli is in position to challenge for the record as the youngest Formula 1 champion.

They know Antonelli is going to get you, they’re not even bother about fighting with him.

· Juan Pablo MontoyaMontoya explained why he believes some rivals are not challenging Antonelli aggressively.
About this summary

Originally published by ABC Australia in English. Translated, summarized, and contextualized automatically by DistantNews, with a note on how the source frames the story. Not individually reviewed before publishing. How this works.

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