Kimi Antonelli insists the Formula 1 title race is “not over” as he takes a vast 81-point lead into this week’s Azerbaijan Grand Prix.
It looks as good as over, but Baku has sprung surprises before and the 20-year-old Italian was beaten by teammate George Russell in both of Thursday’s practice sessions.
A year ago, Baku was where Oscar Piastri’s title shot began to fall apart. The Australian was leading the standings when he almost stalled on the grid, dropped to last and crashed, all in the space of about a minute on the opening lap.
That kicked off a run of six races without a podium finish for Piastri, who had to watch the title race become a fight between eventual champion Lando Norris and Max Verstappen.
Antonelli — whose practice was hampered by car problems Thursday — is sounding cautious as he aims to become F1’s youngest-ever champion.
“Until you cross that finish line, it’s not over. It’s like tennis, one point at a time, here one race at a time,” he said. “The sooner it’s over, the better it is. Still a long way and it’s not going to be easy. It’s going to be intense but I’m ready to give my best and to keep having fun.”
There are key differences this year. For one thing, Antonelli’s lead is more than double the biggest advantage Piastri had last year. He’s coming off back-to-back wins, not the team orders controversy which was dogging Piastri and Norris a year ago.
As for Piastri, he says it’s “love-hate in some ways” as he returns to a venue where he won in 2024 and endured a nightmare 2025.
“I think probably my best race ever has been at this track and probably my worst race ever has been at this track, so always eventful,” Piastri said.
Antonelli’s teammate George Russell was dominant in both practice sessions Thursday, heading the first by 0.4 seconds and beating second-place Antonelli by 0.552 in the other.
Max Verstappen was best of the non-Mercedes drivers as he went second-fastest in the first session and third-fastest in the second, with the two Ferraris of Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton close behind in both.
Lando Norris’ flagging title defense hit another obstacle as he said the McLaren car was “miles off” the pace after placing 14th and sixth in the two sessions.
“The car didn’t feel that bad, so it’s just a little knife in the heart when you see how far off you are,” he added.
Antonelli’s day was disrupted by a hydraulic failure which left his car smoking at the side of the track in the first session. Arvid Lindblad hit a barrier in second practice, causing a red-flag stoppage.
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