Kimi Antonelli landed back in Bologna as Formula 1 world champion. At Marconi Airport, the twenty-year-old Mercedes driver was met by fans and journalists before heading off to spend a few days with family and friends.
“I haven’t been home in quite a while, I missed it,” he said. His first order of business was simple: “I can’t wait to have a plate of tagliatelle tonight, and to see the rest of my family and friends.”
The break will help him recharge before the final three races of the season. The title is already his, but Antonelli still has his sights set on a tenth win of the campaign. To celebrate, he’s even considering a new hair colour — half red-and-blue, half tricolour, in a nod to both his hometown and his country.
Looking back on the championship, the Bologna native points to his comeback drive at Monza as the turning point that changed his mindset: “It’s not that after the comeback I knew I had the title in the bag, but that was the moment I told myself, ‘now I have to go out and win it’.”
At Ferrari, meanwhile, disappointment lingers after the Brazilian Grand Prix, where Charles Leclerc finished eighth and Lewis Hamilton ninth. Rain exacerbated the car’s struggles, compounding tyre issues and a lack of stability.
“I’m devastated by yesterday’s race, especially how it ended,” Hamilton wrote on social media. “It started so well, but we had tyre problems and crazy oversteer. Once the rain came, things became incredibly difficult.”
Leclerc also acknowledged the work that lies ahead: “In these conditions we clearly have a lot to work on, since it was another tough, wet race.”
The next round comes in Las Vegas in two weeks’ time, while at Maranello engineers are already looking ahead to 2027 to address the issues that emerged this season.
