Former Formula 1 driver Juan Pablo Montoya believes Kimi Antonelli is maturing rapidly and becoming very comfortable racing at the front of the pack, which he warns should be a concern for the rest of the grid.
Antonelli continued his sensational 2026 campaign at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve, claiming his fourth consecutive grand prix win. His victory, combined with his Mercedes team-mate George Russell’s retirement, has extended the Italian driver’s lead in the standings to 43 points.
It was not just his race result that caught Montoya’s attention, but rather the way in which Antonelli conducted himself after the race. Russell’s retirement came after several laps of a tense battle with Antonelli for first place, and when the 19-year-old driver crossed the line, he admitted over the team radio that it wasn’t the way he wanted to win that one.
Speaking on the F1 post-race show, Montoya applauded Antonelli’s ability to handle the pressure. “Yeah, it just shows how quickly he’s maturing, how good he’s getting into that role and how comfortable he’s getting into that role.
“That’s the concerning part for the whole paddock, is how comfortable he is winning, and when you’re comfortable winning, it’s so hard to stop you.”
The moment came after a more fraught sprint race on Saturday when his frustrations got the better of Antonelli. He complained multiple times over team radio that Russell had pushed him off the track in another battle, which team chief Toto Wolff quickly shut down, urging the young driver to save it for a private conversation.
Juan Pablo Montoya
Photo by: Marco Canoniero / LightRocket via Getty Images
Montoya noted Antonelli’s change in mindset from Saturday. “I thought it was amazing. I think the race between them was amazing,” he said of the Mercedes drivers. “At the beginning, it looked like George had him covered for over a second, and all of a sudden, they’re racing each other, passing each other.
“It was probably out of the hairpin at Turn 10 again; both of them were struggling on the brakes there. The guy leading, it seemed like they didn’t have a good enough reference or the conditions were changing, or the tyres were at the limit because they were missing the corner.
“Everybody was missing Turn 10 a lot, and that just made it more interesting. I think apart from the small mistake Kimi made on the braking there, and he avoided it well, his mindset was better than yesterday.”
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