Wolff backs Antonelli to learn from Austrian GP errors that cost him pole and podium

Kimi Antonelli’s Austrian Grand Prix unravelled across two days of self-inflicted errors, but Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff insists the 19-year-old will not make the same mistakes twice after a weekend at the Red Bull Ring that ended with George Russell taking victory and Antonelli finishing third.

Antonelli arrived in Austria in strong form, topping both Friday practice sessions, yet his final qualifying lap ended prematurely when he aborted after mistaking a single-waved yellow flag for a double-waved yellow following Max Verstappen’s crash. Russell read the situation correctly, completed his lap, and claimed pole. Antonelli was left to start fourth, behind Russell and both Ferrari drivers.

“The yellow — that’s never going to happen to him in his life again,” Wolff said. “To not see whether it’s a double yellow or a single yellow.”

Starting out of position, Antonelli then compounded the damage in the opening laps with overly aggressive braking attempts on Charles Leclerc, dropping a further place to Verstappen in the process. Wolff was direct in his assessment: “The first few corners, this is where the race got lost. Full attack mode, missing braking in Turn 1, missing braking in Turn 3, missing braking in Turn 4.”

Antonelli accepted responsibility without hesitation after the race. “I was a bit too excited in the first few laps and definitely didn’t drive well,” he said. “I did too many mistakes. And even in the first stint on the mediums, I lost three, four seconds with mistakes.”

The Italian attributed the errors to a drop in intensity after his dominant Friday, followed by tension in qualifying. “I started very strong, and I think because of that I kind of lowered the intensity a bit too much,” he explained. “Coming to qualifying, I just felt a bit tense, driving-wise. We were still up there, but I felt like I wasn’t driving that well and not as free.”

Antonelli recovered composure after his first pit stop, posting strong pace in the final stint, but by then the gap to Russell and Verstappen was too large to bridge. “The pace was again very strong,” he acknowledged. “It was a shame that I joined the party a bit too late.”

Despite the setback, Wolff framed the errors as a natural part of Antonelli’s development rather than a cause for concern. Russell’s win at the Red Bull Ring trimmed Antonelli’s drivers’ championship lead to 40 points, keeping the title race firmly alive heading into the summer stretch.