Antonelli targets aggressive undercut strategy to rescue Malaysia GP after Mercedes upgrade disappointment

Kimi Antonelli will line up third on the grid for the Malaysian Grand Prix at Sepang after a qualifying session that exposed the limits of Mercedes’ freshly introduced upgrade package, leaving the rookie half a second adrift of pole-sitter Max Verstappen. He moves up from fourth to third only because of a five-place grid penalty applied to Isack Hadjar.

Antonelli had entered Saturday as one of the session’s favourites following a strong FP3 showing, but both he and team-mate George Russell were undone by a straight-line deficit and tyre troubles that allowed Verstappen, Lewis Hamilton, and Hadjar to climb the timing sheets. Russell finished eighth in qualifying — seventh after Hadjar’s penalty is applied.

“It’s much better than what I expected,” Antonelli said. “Especially with only one set of new tyres, not easy, so obviously I did a mistake with the track limits, I understeered off the track. But I think with a clean qualifying — probably P2, maybe P3 on the road, but not P1. Max was a bit too quick for us today.”

The seven-piece upgrade package Mercedes brought to Sepang has introduced as many questions as answers. Team principal Toto Wolff has acknowledged the uncertainty, and Antonelli echoed that sentiment, pointing to the circuit’s abrasive surface and extreme heat as factors that have made it difficult to properly evaluate the new components.

“Definitely there’s a lot of learning that we need to make about this package,” Antonelli said. “The track doesn’t help as well because the tarmac is so rough and it’s so hot that the tyres are out of the [operating] windows after two corners. So you’re just sliding around and it’s making our life difficult to understand this package.”

Despite the qualifying setback, Antonelli is not writing off his Sunday prospects. With a mixed grid and high tyre degradation expected in the Malaysian heat, he believes strategy could be the decisive factor — specifically the undercut, where a driver pits for fresh tyres ahead of the car in front, using the performance advantage of new rubber to emerge ahead when that rival eventually stops.

“I think strategy is going to be really important. It’s going to be a race where we will attack because the undercut is incredibly powerful, so I think whenever there’s an opportunity, we should go for maybe an undercut and try to maximise our opportunity,” he said.

Antonelli acknowledged the race could stretch to two or three pit stops depending on how the tyres hold up in the heat, adding: “The only thing we know is that it’s going to be roasting hot out there.”